The United States' top intelligence agency, Federal Bureau of
Investigations (FBI) says that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
(LTTE) is the most dangerous and deadly extremist organization in the
world. The official website of FBI in its tops story said that LTTE is
far more dangerous terrorists outfit than al Queda, Hezbullah or even
HAMAS. Read more...

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Current
Significant Issues

Wednesday, 21 July 2010 10:41 PM

The
three member panel appointed by UN Secretary General Ban ki-moon to advise
him on Sri Lanka is not authorized by any decision making body of the UN.

Why aren't Tamil Tigers
proscribed here too - AS Prime Minister, it's
Julia Gillard's paramount duty to protect the Australian people from
terrorists. Yet, under Labor policies, Australia has become the
destination of choice for boatloads of Sri Lankan Tamils ("Up to half
Sri Lankan arrivals have ties to Tigers", 14/7). Tamil Tiger members
are attracted to Australia because, as Sally Neighbour reports, the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam remains legal here, unlike in the US,
Canada and the 27 member countries of the European Union where it's
proscribed as a terrorist organisation. Now we learn that Sri Lankan
officials estimate that between 25 and 50 per cent of Sri Lankans fleeing
to Australia have connections to the defeated LTTE. Before the coming
election, Gillard must explain why her government has not outlawed the
LTTE. Until she does, her late conversion to tough policies on
asylum-seekers will be seen as false and all about staunching the damage
to Labor's vote in its heartland electorates. More than that, her
pretensions to be the leader of this nation will be revealed to be hollow
(The Australian : 15 July 2010).

Migrant Sri Lankan
organisations send an open letter to UN chief against the advisory panel
appointed on Sri Lanka - Migrant Sri Lankan
organisations in many countries sent an open letter to the UN Secretary
General expressing their protest over the appointment of advisory panel on
Sri Lanka. The organisations have expressed their dissatisfaction on this
act. They say that as a result, a threat has been posed on Sri Lanka’s
sovereignty. It has also been stressed that making accusations on Sri
Lanka over war crimes is a major injustice. The Secretary General has not
appointed such an advisory committee on Israel, America, Britain, France,
Colombia, and East Timor. Meanwhile, the Human Rights Commissioner to UN
Navanidanpille was engaged in activities against Sri Lanka from the
beginning. She acted upon based on the decisions of NGOs and some media
reports. There was no consideration on Sri Lanka on diplomatic level. Most
of the countries at the UN session in Geneva have approved that no human
rights violations or war crimes have taken place in Sri Lanka. More than
one hundred persons have been killed in the east Timor crisis. A
controversial situation had arisen in Ruwanda due to genocide and other
human right violations. But the UN had not appointed an advisory panel
against these countries. Although millions of Africans were displaced and
not resettled, but in Sri Lanka the government was successfully resettled
the displaced in the northern province within a short period. 25 Sri
Lankan foreign organisations have signed the letter (SLBC
: 15 July 2010).

North HSZ to remain -
The government says it will continue with High Security Zones (HSZ) in the
North to maintain security and in the absence of State land the government
will be compelled to use private land situated at strategic locations for
this purpose. Responding to a question posed by a journalist at the
Cabinet press briefing today Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said that
when the US has military bases overseas for security purposes Sri Lanka
has a right to have security zones on its own soil to maintain security.
However in April this year EPDP leader Douglas Devananda assured that
gradually all the High Security Zones in the Jaffna peninsula will be
removed as there is no more a security threat. Speaking to Daily Mirror
online Devananda had recalled that President Mahinda Rajapaksa also has a
vision for the people in the Northern Province to experience the same
freedom as experienced by the people in the South (Daily
Mirror : 15 July 2010).

All dilapidated buildings
will be restored: Highest financial allocation for North - During
a public gathering in Kilinochchi yesterday, President Mahinda Rajapaksa
said that the Government's largest financial allocation for regional
development went to uplift the conflict ravaged North. The President
pointed out to the public that the infrastructure that the Government had
built at great cost such as Kilinochchi hospital, rail roads and A-9 road
were destroyed by the LTTE. "Now we are taking loans from the
ADB and World Bank to rebuild these destroyed infrastructure for
you," he added. The President assured the public that all dilapidated
buildings in Kilinochchi would be restored by September. He noted
that such speedy development / resettlement was unprecedented in the
context of other global experiences in the aftermath of such damaging
conflicts. The President also told the gathering that he was quite
aware about the difficulties faced by them and added that he had launched
the humanitarian operation as a last resort as all talks on an amicable
settlement had failed. "This is a new beginning. The
troublesome past is over now. We are all the same and as such we should
all join hands and rise together in our quest to achieve collective
prosperity," he added. During the occasion the President also
donated funds to renovate dilapidated houses, two wheel tractors, water
pumps, generators, bicycles etc too were distributed among the newly
resettled. President Rajapaksa charged that certain NGOs/Organizations
were collecting large amounts of foreign funds at the expense of newly
resettled people in the North. He said these organizations were
embezzling monies from certain foreign nations which did not give a cent
to Sri Lanka as development funds, by showing pictures of unfinished
buildings (intentionally done) to their overseas sponsors (Daily
News : 15 July 2010).

Nihal de
Mel – An Eulogy

On the early
hours of Monday the 12th of July 2010, Nihal de Mel, a gentleman
with exceptional qualities left us for good. Although he had been
suffering for many months with an incurable illness and his oncoming
fate was a forgone conclusion, the news of his demise made everyone
who knew him weep. The invariable question that came to their minds
is “How can such an unbelievably fine person die at such a
premature age”.

Traditionally,
when a person passes away, only the good of him is remembered and
recited. But with Nihal, even when he was living, everyone bar none
couldn’t even think of just one quality that was not par
excellence. He was pleasant, humble, jovial, kind, and above all,
was the epitome of altruism.

Nihal had
such a pleasant personality that anyone who met him became instant
life-long friends. Being in his presence was a joy by itself.

He was a
humble man with zero ego. When showered with praise truly due to
him, he diverted it towards others who may have had minimal
contribution for his achievements.

Nihal was
indeed a beautiful person, both physically and mentally. Joviality
was in his blood, so much so that he, though in pain in his last
days, made visiting friends burst into raptures by telling one yarn
after another - he had a limitless collection of them, most, we
suspect, of his own - when they visited him. Although a teetotaller,
he was the life of any party he graced.

Nihal’s
kindness was entwined with his incredible selflessness. He toiled
day and night for months, collecting or purchasing goodies, ranging
from clothes to tools to books to computers, to fill a shipping
container that would be sent to Sri Lanka with specific instructions
to distribute among the poor without favour or discrimination. No
sooner it left, he started on filling another container! He was a
modern day Wessanthara, even making a present of a large collection
of albums of stamps he had lovingly collected all his life to a kid
who fondly admired it. Believe it or not, every thing he earned was
to be given away to the needy. It was Jean, his beloved wife, who
kept the home fires burning, smiling at Nihal’s welfare work like
a mother enjoying the hobbies of her son. It is also fair to say
that Nihal couldn’t have done everything he did without the
assistance from his brother Gyan, son Yohan and a handful of
faithful friends who couldn’t bear seeing him toil alone.

Brimming with
brilliant ideas and being an accomplished technologist, he rendered
his services to the community freely. In particular, he had a mutual
love for SPUR, as the society shared a lot of values and projects
with Nihal.

Born a
Chrisitian, Nihal had an open mind about religions. To him, all that
mattered was being good. He prayed to God and went to Bodhi poojas
with equal enthusiasm.

May he rest
in peace and attain nibbana!

Please
note : the
funeral will be held at 3:45pm, Boyd Chapel, Springvale cemetery,
Melbourne, Australia on Thursday, 15 July 2010.

Fuel prices slashed in
Jaffna - The Government yesterday decided to
reduce fuel and kerosene prices in the Jaffna Peninsula following the
Cabinet meeting in Iranamadu, Kilinochchi. The price of petrol which
earlier stood at Rs 119 a litre is reduced to Rs 115.60. Diesel price has
come down from Rs 75.50 to Rs 73.60 and kerosene formerly sold at Rs 54.00
is down to Rs 51.60. The Government yesterday decided to reduce fuel and
kerosene prices in the Jaffna Peninsula following the Cabinet meeting in
Iranamadu, Kilinochchi. The price of petrol which earlier stood at Rs 119
a litre is reduced to Rs 115.60. Diesel price has come down from Rs 75.50
to Rs 73.60 and kerosene formerly sold at Rs 54.00 is down to Rs 51.60.
The price revision was effective from midnight yesterday. The Cabinet
decided to reduce prices giving consent to a Cabinet paper submitted by
Minister Susil Premajayantha seeking a revision of fuel and kerosene
prices in Jaffna peninsula. Fuel and kerosene prices would now be on par
with that in most other parts of the country. The prices in Jaffna were
higher earlier mainly due to the higher transport cost (Daily
News : 15 July 2010).

Mullaitivu gets Rs 170 m
power supply scheme - The newly set up
Mullaitivu Electricity Supply Scheme costing Rs 170 million was opened by
Power and Energy Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka yesterday. This
replaces the old electricity scheme under which the Ceylon Electricity
Board (CEB) supplied electricity to Mullaitivu using generators, the Power
and Energy Minister said in a press release yesterday. The new scheme also
involved the relaying of a new high velocity distribution line from
Mankulam to Kilinochchi through Omanthai by rehabilitating the old
dilapidated line from Vavuniya to Omanthai. This is part of the Ministry
Program to provide electricity supplies to people in the North and East
under an accelerated program in line with the Mahinda Chinthana policies
of catering to the welfare of people liberated from terrorist clutches.
The release also said concurrently Rs 110 million had been spent to
activate the 50 km electricity line along the A34 highway from Mankulam to
Mullaitivu via Oddusudan. The Minister also opened an electricity supply
scheme for 200 families in Mullavali almost nine km off Mullaitivu town
and a supply scheme for the business community in Mullaitivu town using
new transformers. The Ministry has also planned a small, medium and long
term plan to improve the electricity supply scheme under the future policy
and vision of Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka (Daily
News : 15 July 2010).

Top priority towards
eradicating poverty in North-East - The
Agriculture Ministry will give top priority towards eradicating poverty in
the North and East by developing the agriculture sector with the assistant
of the Food and Agriculture Organization, Agriculture Deputy Minister
Jagath Pushpakumara said participating in the National Stakeholder
Re-validation Workshop on Pro-poor Policy Formulation held at Renuka
Hotel, Colombo yesterday. "Whenever we ask for help the FAO
comes forward to help us. It is a grate opportunity for us," the
Minister said. The FAO conducted a study on pro-poor policy with support
from the Council for Agricultural Research Policy(CARP) and Hector
Kobbekaduwa Agrarian Research and Training Institute with the objective to
review the policies and programs of agricultural development and assess
their implications for rural poverty. Based on this it suggested a package
of policies for empowering poor farmers and reducing poverty at a rapid
rate. The focus of the study was on irrigation, institutions and
inputs and product markets related to food crops, livestock and fisheries
sector. "We are supporting the Government's program on food
production and specially support the Government to restart agriculture in
North and East by developing home gardens, poultry, vegetable cultivation,
paddy cultivation and horticulture in these areas, said FAO Representative
to Sri Lanka Patrick Evans (Daily
News : 15 July 2010).

War with LTTE only after
peace bids failed: President - The global
community and international agencies must realise that Sri Lanka
militarily confronted the LTTE only after other avenues to resolve the
ethnic conflict through peaceful means had been exhausted, President
Mahinda Rajapaksa said yesterday. He told a public rally at Kilinochchi
that he was even prepared to come there if the LTTE had opted for talks,
but the terrorists thought otherwise. “The people in the North have
suffered for more than 30 years. Who destroyed the Northern railway line?
Who destroyed the Kilinochchi hospital? It is the LTTE, which brought so
much misery to the people in the North and East. It is the LTTE that
destroyed A9 highway. It murdered expectant mothers inside buses and
killed the cream of Tamil intellectuals and Sinhala and Muslims political
leaders during its destructive 30-year terror campaign,” President
Rajapaksa said. He said the Kilinochchi hospital was constructed for the
northern people through a Asian Development Bank loan obtained by the then
government while the present government had to obtain a World Bank loan to
reconstruct the Kilinochchi hospital. He said if not for the mass scale
destruction these funds could have been better used to upgrade the living
standards of those in the North. The president said the government’s
main objective was to rehabilitate Tamil youth who had been brainwashed by
the LTTE. He said even though they might have fought against the security
forces the government was ready to rehabilitate them and absorb into
society and thus give them an opportunity to live as law abiding citizens.
Taking a swipe at certain officials and NGOs, President Rajapaksa said he
had seen a large number of partly built houses on either side of the road.
He said he wondered whether these officials were attempting to obtain
funds from foreign sources by showing pictures of the partly built houses.
The president said under the ‘Northern Spring’ project the government
had carried out a huge development programme in the North and that public
officials must serve their people with commitment, dedication and without
prejudice just like parents treat their children (Daily
Mirror : 15 July 2010).

'Shed political
differences and serve the people' Sri Lanka President says -
The time has come for everyone to shed political differences and join
together to rebuild the lives of the people devastated by the three-decade
long terrorism, Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa told public
officials in Kilinochchi Wednesday. Addressing the public officials in the
Northern region following the historic Cabinet meeting in Kilinochchi
Wednesday, the President said there is a massive development in the North
today and urged the officials to commit themselves to serve the people.
The President highlighted that the government has resettled the internally
displaced with necessary security in a speedy manner unparallel to
anywhere else in the world. "I just want to remind you that today we
are creating history. This is the first time that a Head of State is
addressing public officials at a location at Kilinochchi," the
President noted. President Rajapaksa instructed the public officials to go
to the people and identify their problems and work towards addressing
those problems (Colombo
Page : 15 July 2010).

Cabinet meets in
Kilinochchi Capital of Prabhakaran’s dreamland Eelam: A
historic meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers was held yesterday for the
first time in Kilinochchi, the so called capital of Prabhakaran’s
dreamland Eelam. The weekly Cabinet meeting usually held in Colombo,
this time was held in a scenic location close to the Iranamadu tank where
LTTE’s Anton Balasingham landed on a sea plane some time ago. The
meeting took place in a building once used as the LTTE headquarters. It
now lies in the precincts of the Kilinochchi Security Forces
headquarters. The Kilinochchi meeting marks the continuation of
President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s policy to hold Cabinet meetings outside
Colombo. Earlier, Cabinet meetings were held in Kandy and Embilipitiya.
President Rajapaksa addressing the Ministers at the start of the Cabinet
meeting said that Sri Lanka today was a truly united country sans the
scourge of terrorism. He added that this was amply reflected by
being able to hold a Cabinet meeting in the former LTTE stronghold.
Yesterday’s Cabinet meeting was attended by all Ministers, a fact that
came in for high praise from the President at the start of the
deliberations (Daily
News : 15 July 2010).

Twenty
year development plan for Jaffna

Some random
thoughts about the UN International Advisory Panel -
By Dr. Lakshman Marasinghe,Emeritus Professor of Law, University of
Windsor, Ontario, Canada - I have been back at home to witness and read
the media coverage regarding the appointment of an International panel by
the Secretary General of the UN to advise himself on matters pertaining to
the ending of a 30 year internecine armed conflict in a member State- Sri
Lanka. These are some random thoughts that I do wish to express through
your columns. At the very outset I am reminded of the fact that the panel
appointed was not an internal panel drawn from within the Secretariat but
is a panel where its members so appointed were drawn from outside it.
Therefore this is not a part of any internal enquiry but an international
enquiry which the Secretary – General had himself launched without any
reference to the Security Council. In my understanding of the Charter
Chapter VI and in particular Articles 33, 34 and other relevant Articles
of that chapter require the authorization of the Security Council for the
Secretary-General to cause an investigation into the internal affairs of a
member State. However, The Secretary-General states that the charter does
not apply to the empanelling of a panel merely to advise him. That is
quite obviously a matter that could be disputed as the panel was not
appointed to advise on something outside the concerns mentioned in
Articles 33 and 34 of the Charter, such as the prevailing weather patterns
over Sri Lanka. However, as the mandate of the panel so appointed was to
render advice of a particular fact which is a concern of Article VI of the
Charter, it somehow befuddles my own mind when I begin to imagine this
International Panel rendering its advise without making any kind of
investigation into internal affairs of a member state (Daily
Mirror : 14 July 2010).

UN panel not
authorized - The three member panel appointed by
UN Secretary General Ban ki-moon to advise him on Sri Lanka is not
authorized by any decision making body of the UN, Sri Lanka’s Permanent
Representative to the UN in New York Dr. Palitha Kohona said. In an
emailed response to a question posed by Daily Mirror online Dr. Kohona
said that the move by the UN Chief to appoint the panel sets precedent as
it is not authorized. He also noted that a similar move on Sri Lanka was
resoundingly rejected by the UN Human Rights Council last year. UN
Secretary-General Ban ki-moon had earlier reiterated that the three member
panel appointed by him on Sri Lanka has been set up to advise him with
regard to taking forward the objectives of the Joint Statement of 23 May
2009 between Sri Lanka and the UN and is not an investigative body. The
Secretary-General had said the strong reaction to his establishment of the
panel of experts on accountability in Sri Lanka is not warranted. (Daily
Mirror online : 14 July 2010).

Real
terrorists enter via airports, not on leaky boats -
So some asylum seekers are terrorists are they? Well yes, according to The
Australian today. But for a host of reasons we should be very cautious in
accepting the veracity of those who make claims that people fleeing
conflict are in fact zealous members of terrorist organizations. According
to Sally Neighbour, who writes on terrorism issues for The Australian,
"Sri Lankan officials" have told a Defence analyst Sergei
DeSilva-Ranasinghe that "between 25 and 50 per cent of Tamils fleeing
to Australia have connections to the defeated Liberation Tigers of Tamil
Eelam (LTTE)." "DeSilva-Ranasinghe said that during a recent
visit to Sri Lanka, two government ministers and several other officials,
including Catholic Church staff with deep ties in the Tamil community,
told him 25 per cent was at the lower end of their estimates. The people I
spoke to constantly said 50 per cent," he told The Australian,"
Neighbour writes in her front page splash. Mr. DeSilva-Ranasinghe's views
should not necessarily be accepted as gospel. After all he made the
extraordinary claim in the same paper on 7 April this year that
"there is strong evidence that since the defeat of the Tamil Tigers
in May 2009 Sri Lanka has moved towards stability and inter-ethnic
reconciliation, rather than widespread or institutionalised persecution of
its Tamil population." This is certainly not what the United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says in its latest country
assessment of Sri Lanka, issued on July 5. While noting that steps are
being taken to normalize the country the report also notes that detention
without trial, torture of suspects, rape and other forms of sexual abuse
of women and children is happening and that there is "severe
overcrowding and lack of adequate sanitation, food, water and medical
treatment" in prisons. Hardly a rosy picture! As to whether or not
there are terrorists on leaky boats trying to get to Australia, one might
want to consider a recent case in Canada where a similar claim was made
about a group of 25 Sri Lankan asylum seekers who were detained last
October after arriving on a boat in Vancouver by the Canadian Border
Security Agency (CBSA) because they had been told the men were members of
the Tamil Tigers (ABC
News : 14 July 2010).

Half of Sri
Lankan arrivals have ties to Tigers - AS many as
half of Sri Lankans seeking asylum in Australia are suspected of being
former fighters, operatives or supporters of the Tamil Tigers. The Tigers
have been designated a terrorist organisation in many countries but not in
Australia. Sri Lankan officials estimate that between 25 and 50 per cent
of Tamils fleeing to Australia have connections to the defeated Liberation
Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Defence analyst Sergei DeSilva-Ranasinghe
said that during a recent visit to Sri Lanka, two government ministers and
several other officials, including Catholic Church staff with deep ties in
the Tamil community, told him 25 per cent was at the lower end of their
estimates. "The people I spoke to constantly said 50 per cent,"
he told The Australian. Mr DeSilva-Ranasinghe says former Tamil Tiger
members are attracted to Australia because the LTTE remains legal here,
unlike in the US, Canada, Britain and 27 EU member countries, where it is
proscribed as a terrorist organisation. He said this was an anomaly
that should be rectified by Canberra adding the LTTE to its list of banned
terrorist groups. "You've got people here who've essentially been
radicalised, who've fought and (may have) committed acts of terrorism, and
they've come here without any sense of being rehabilitated," he said.
Since the surge in boat arrivals started in late 2008, 1100 Sri Lankan
asylum-seekers have arrived in Australia. Of these 325 have been granted
visas, 85 have returned and the rest are in detention. Last week Julia
Gillard lifted the freeze on processing Sri Lankan asylum applications,
after the UN High Commissioner for Refugees issued new guidelines on the
handling of Tamil claims. The UN said that improvements in the security
situation in Sri Lanka since the 26-year civil war ended in May last year
meant there was no need to provide automatic protection to Sri Lankans
leaving the country. Rather, it said, their claims should be assessed on a
case-by-case basis. However, the new UN guidelines say individuals deemed
to be at risk in their homeland require "a particularly careful
examination" of their asylum claims. Those classified among the
UNHCR's "potential risk profiles" include "persons
suspected of having links with the LTTE". Mr DeSilva-Ranasinghe says
the UN's recommendation that Tamil Tiger fighters be given refuge is
"ridiculous" (The
Australian : 14 July 2010).

UNSG’s panel on SL a
violation of UN charter - Sajith - UNP
Parliamentarian Sajith Premadasa said yesterday that the three-member
panel appointed by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, to look into the
accountability issues during the last phase of war against the LTTE was a
gross violation of the UN Charter. Addressing a press conference at the
Opposition leader’s office, Premadasa described it as an attempt to
interfere in the sovereignty of a member country. Article 2:7 Chapter 1 of
the UN Charter clearly outlined that the UN body should not meddle with
internal affairs of a member country, he said. "United Nations
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s panel tries is to intervene in an
internal affair of Sri Lanka," he said. The UN could intervene in
domestic affairs of a member country only in matters concerning peace and
security. The Charter, in Article 7, warrants such an intervention if the
issue at hand became a threat to world peace and security, but even then,
the UN should take prior approval from the Security Council, Premadasa
said. He said that the UNSG was nothing but an international bureaucrat
who represented an organisation funded and nurtured by the international
community. So, there should be left no room for him to act according to
his whims and fancies. "There are protocols to be followed, and it’s
mandatory for Moon to follow them," he said. The EU had granted the
GSP Plus preferential trade facility to Sri Lanka in 2005 unconditionally,
Premadasa said. After Sri Lanka defeated a terrorist organisation,
conditions had been imposed in return of an extension of the trade
facility. The EU too had attempted to intervene in the internal affairs of
Sri Lanka in the guise of continuing the GSP Plus concession, he said (Island
: 14 July 2010).

UN is not clean. There
are skeletons in their cupboards - By Malin
Abeyatunge, Melbourne, Australia - Hunger strike by a patriotic political
front NFF lead by a Minister of the cabinet Wimal Weerawansa (he had since
given resignation to save face of the Government and now it is reported
that Wimal and his party colleagues have given up the hunger strike after
President Rajapaksa’s intervention) against United Nation Secretary
General (UNSG) Ban-Ki--Moon’s interference in Sri Lankan domestic
affairs had hit the head lines in the world print media. UN as well as its
UNSG are perturbed over the peaceful demonstrations opposite the UN
Office-Colombo (UNOC) by NFF. It’s sacrosanct of the UN Charter to
protect the Right for “Freedom of Expression”. That’s what the
protestors were doing against UNSG Ban-Ki-Moon. So, why should either UN
or Ban-ki-Moon or its officials make such a hallabaloo when UN is there to
protect ‘Human Rights” one of which is freedom of expression.
Surly, LTTE supportive Tamil Diaspora had demonstrations and protest
umpteen number of times opposite the UN Office in Geneva over the years
inconveniencing public but did UNO record any objections
during these protests? How come they didn’t utter a word against
those demos and protests? I doubt that UN is free from immunity that no
one or country should protest against UN wrong doings if any. Already
Nepal has found fault with the UN that UN is trying to interfere with the
negotiations that’s taking place with Maoists outfit. UN should practice
what it preaches and allow the protesters to manifest their anger against
Ban-k-Moon’s unilateral decision on Sri Lanka, in a peaceful
manner. The protesters were not after any personal vendetta against
Bank-Moon. It is a protest of his arrogance to appoint a three member
panel without the approval/consent of the UN Security Council or UN Human
Rights Council ignoring all that protocol. He has no doubt become a
puppet of some western countries, Human Rights Organizations like
Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, ICG and the Tamil
Diaspora who had infiltrated into UNO’s inner circles who are heads of
many UN Agencies (Sri Lanka News
Online : 14 July 2010).

Asylum claims: Lankan
surgeon welcomes Aussie Govt's decision - A
Tamil veterinary surgeon practising in Melbourne has supported the
Australian Government's decision to freeze the processing of asylum claims
from Sri Lankans saying the situation in Sri Lanka has improved greatly.
Dr Noel Nadesan said he did not believe any Sri Lankan refugees could hold
legitimate fears for their life. Rather than providing asylum, he would
like to see the Australian Government doing more to aid and repatriate
former refugees. Dr Nadesan also offered an insight into Australia's Tamil
community, saying that LTTE representatives who were sent to the
negotiating table during the war, many of whom were living in Australia,
were "imbeciles." In March last year, in an article titled
"Let my people go in peace." Dr Nadesan wrote: "We have
looked the other way when our entire leadership was liquidated, not by the
Sri Lankan Government but by our own people." Dr Nadesan said Julia
Gillard's decision to try to shift asylum-seekers to East Timor, or Manus,
or some other offshore destination, did not appear different to John
Howard's Pacific Solution. "It doesn't fit into the principle of
giving protection. It is a political decision to process people away from
the mainland," he said (Daily
News : 14 July 2010).

Twenty year development
plan for Jaffna - A 20 year plan to develop the
Jaffna Municipal Council area has been drawn at a meeting at the Jaffna
Municipal Council. Jaffna Mayor Y Patkunarajah presided at the meeting.
Jaffna Government Agent K Ganesh, Police officers, Jaffna Municipal
Council members and Government department heads were present. The plan
which will cost Rs. 37,898 billion will be implemented in three stages
commencing this year. Development of Duraiappa Stadium, construction of
Cultural Development Centre, development of Jaffna Teaching Hospital,
construction of international cricket ground at Kalundai, construction of
Northern Province Governor's office and residence, reconstruction of
Jaffna Railway station, development work at Jaffna bus stand and Jaffna
main market, construction of prison house in Jaffna, a housing scheme for
low income group at Navanthurai and reconstructing damaged houses for the
homeless and reconstruction of Vannankulam and Pullukulam in Jaffna are
some of the development plans in the report prepared by the Jaffna town
Development program division (Daily
News : 14 July 2010).

Demining process
expedited - The Government has expedited the
demining process in a bid to complete the resettlement in the Mullaitivu,
Mannar, Killinochchi and Vavuniya districts . Special focus has been given
to the Mullaitivu district. The Economic Development Ministry has provided
all infrastructure facilities including demining machines to military
personnel involved in these activities. A land area of 1,111 square
kilometers has already been cleared of mines and booby traps by soldiers
using mechanical and manual methods. Over 1,050 soldiers have been
deployed for these activities. The Economic Development Ministry has
provided 29 Flail machines to detect land mines and other unexploded
devices in areas formerly held by the terrorists. Eight sniffer dogs have
been trained to detect land mines and booby traps in areas where the
mechanics cannot be deployed. Several international organizations in
coordination with a local organization have been involved in the demining
in selected areas in the Northern province. These organizations have
deployed more than 2,100 officers in the demining activities. The
Government allocated Rs 2,180 million for the demining last year and
conducted 17,654 workshops to educate people in the areas dotted with
land mines and booby traps with the assistance of UNESCO (Daily
News : 14 July 2010).

Lankans protest in Geneva
- A group of Sri Lankans staged a protest
outside the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva yesterday calling on UN
Secretary General Ban ki-moon to dissolve the three member advisory panel
he appointed on Sri Lanka. Daily Mirror online sources in Geneva who
witnessed the protest said that among the handful of Sri Lankans who
staged the demonstration outside the Geneva UN office were some Sri Lankan
journalists living in exile. Similar protests against the UN Chief are
expected to be held in New York, Britain, Germany, Italy and several other
countries, the National Freedom Front had said this week. (Daily
Mirror online : 14 July 2010).

The
Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) opened its Northern Provincial Office in
Jaffna

WHERE DOES INDIA STAND? -
By Gomin Dayasri - India is Indira, has changed to Sonia is India.
Ironically Italian, Intelligently Indian, she held the key to India Gate
at an opportune moment for the fate of Sri Lanka. Coming from the land of
godfathers where avenging death is a sacred article in their code of
honour, no pardon was forthcoming to Prabhakaran amidst a thousand
apologies under rule of the Indian Congress in the court of Sonia Gandhi.
Fury of a woman for a death of a husband, deeply ingrained in the folklore
of India and its celluloid cinema culture, was not a bargaining factor for
any ruling Congressman, many deeply indebted to her. India’s enigmatic
diplomacy in furtherance of sub continent dominance is to contain its
neighbours with fractured societies. India suffers from internal
divisions; pathologically desire those on the borders must endure the same
fate. Suspect is India, in the neighbourhood of malevolent supremacy; LTTE
tuned by India was to keep Lanka on a checkmate position. The original
script required revision, as its fissiparous nature was unhealthy of being
infectious in India and the assassin of a princely leader of a dynasty
received no mercy. Outward hostility blended with inward tolerance, would
have been the policy towards the LTTE but for the grief of a widow and for
the pride of India (LankaWeb
: 13 July 2010).

WHAT IS GOING WRONG? - By
Gomin Dayasri - We are suddenly in the international incinerator, after
successfully navigating in troubled waters during times of war, when the
weather was far more cyclonic. The US State Department despatched a tomb
with over 300 charges on war crimes while we snuggle to cuddle its head,
Hillary Clinton; European Union decided to draw the curtain on GST + after
listening to the pleas of every Tom Dick and Harry from Colombo. UN
Secretary General appoints a team of three to advice on Sri Lanka after we
(unlike India that denied entry) lavished hospitality from Alston to
Arbour, and are now preparing tamely to concede more and more on the 13th
Amendment, after holding to our options when we were weaker. There are two
distinct epochs- War Zone during Pre General Elections as against Peace
Zone during Post General Elections. Therein lies the difference-
government under threat, brilliant in the management of many aspects in
the war with a marginalized majority to a government, woefully inadequate
in times of peace living in bliss, on a cushioned near 2/3 majority. Is it
the Orwellian Ministry of Truth’s War is Peace? Living on laurels is
like sleeping on a pillow with a reptile underneath. People forgot and
forgave the government for any misdemeanour for the greater good of
winning the war and expressed their gratitude in abundance at two
elections. It means a 23 year cycle (until 2017) with a 2/3 majority in
the final lap for a single regime surpassed only in Japan in the
democratic world. Indeed, that counts for 16 of the said 23 years, with a
war, against the UNP believed to be impliedly in collusion with the
terrorists, in the mind of the majority and the JVP after the seismic
shift sounds more like NGO clones. The people, waited patiently for the
government to reciprocate their gratitude but the evening thunderbolts
from the televised news desks of rising prices makes the rupee, worthless
than waste paper (LankaWeb
: 13 July 2010).

Ban Ki Moon’s Expert
Panel & revisiting the real Human Rights culprits -
by Shenali Waduge - It is not without reason that Ban Ki Moon is being
vilified for degrading his role as the custodian of world peace, not that
other UN Secretary General’s have faired any better but it is becoming
increasingly clear that the UN & its officials are becoming agents of
Western imperialism. Sri Lanka in particular fresh out of a terrorist
conflict now finds itself being terrorized by the UN with neo-colonists
eyeing to use Sri Lanka’s strategic importance to their benefit in the
Asian sub-continent. The predicament Sri Lanka currently faces ironically
encompasses the terror reign of the LTTE for a nation whose people are
trying to rebuild their lives in peaceful coexistence are being told to go
back to the past instead of looking at the future. Does the UN need to be
wasting time, resources & money for such useless endeavors? UN
Secretary General’s Press Release (SG/SM/12967) of 22nd June 2010 issued
by the Dept of Public Information-New York states in its headline: ”Secretary
General names Panel of Experts to advise on accountability for possible
rights violations during Sri Lanka conflict” A joint statement was
issued by the UN Secretary General SG/2151 on 26th May 2009, following his
visit to Sri Lanka on 23rd May. From this joint statement the following is
apparent : (LankaWeb
: 13 July 2010).

Tamil who
turned against Tigers urges more aid to repatriate refugees -
IN Australia's Tamil community, Noel Nadesan has been, by his own
reckoning, the No 1 enemy of the Tamil Tigers. He is an outspoken critic
of the war in Sri Lanka who said the "glamour and the glory" of
the separatist struggle had disappeared, leaving only "the grim
suffering of our people". Dr Nadesan was the Tamil who turned; the
founder of a Tamil medical unit supported by the Tamil Tigers in the 1980s
who believed violence was necessary, but who came to believe that the
separatist dream of Tamil Eelam was a dangerous delusion and its leaders
sadistic terrorists. A veterinary surgeon in Melbourne, Dr Nadesan
established an Australia-wide community newspaper, Uthayama, printing
10,000 copies a month for 13 years. He used it to urge peace in Sri Lanka.
More than once the paper was burned in protest by supporters of the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. In March last year, he led a
diaspora delegation of Tamils living in seven countries into talks with
the Sri Lankan government. He is helping to establish a hospital in his
family's village. Dr Nadesan backs the federal government's decision to
lift the freeze on the processing of asylum claims for Sri Lankans. He
said yesterday the situation in Sri Lanka had improved greatly since the
end of the 26-year war on May 19 last year, with many opponents of the
government now released from prison. He said he did not believe any Sri
Lankan refugees could hold legitimate fears for their life. Rather than
providing asylum, he would like to see the Australian government doing
more to aid and repatriate former refugees. Dr Nadesan also offered an
insight into Australia's Tamil community, saying that LTTE representatives
who were sent to the negotiating table during the war, many of whom were
living in Australia, were "imbeciles" (The
Australian : 13 July 2010).

Is Sri Lanka a culprit or
a victim? By Dr. Edward Perera – Chairman of
the Hela Abhimana Foundation in Germany and the Executive Committee Member
of Global Sri Lankan Forum in Canada. (The following is Dr. Edward Perera’s
text of the handout to be distributed at today’s mass protest in Geneva.
The contents of this handout is fully endorsed by Douglas Wickramaratne
– President of Sinhala Association in UK, Lenin Benedict – Executive
Committee Member of Global Sri Lankan Forum in Canada, Janaka Alahapperuma
– President of British Sri Lanka Forum, Saman Mannapperuma – President
of Global Sri Lankan Forum in France, Mrs. Chirasri Udugampola –
President of Sri Lankan Diaspora and Global Sri Lankan Forum in
Switzerland.) There is a special reason to select this particular topic.
In a situation, in which the whole world is observing what is taking place
in Sri Lanka, this attempt could be a small contribution dedicated to the
truth. In a conflict situation where two divided parties claim they
themselves to be honest, a third party could end up with a deep ambiguity.
In order to avoid this uncertainty in the process of understanding and
evaluating the events, a kind of rational explanation would be essentially
useful. When we talk about Tamil speaking people in Sri Lanka, they are
not purely a nation or a race. The mother language of Sri Lankan Muslims
is also Tamil and many Sinhalese living in North West and East of Sri
Lanka use Tamil in their day to day activities. If anybody feels that
there should be a separate land, so-called Eelam for the Tamil people
living in Sri Lanka, the idea can only survive in a dream world due to: (Sinhale
Hot News : 13 July 2010).

Security for Chennai HC -
The Tamil Nadu government has provided security for the Sri Lankan Deputy
High Commission in Chennai which has come under threat from pro-LTTE
elements and various other groups including Tamil political parties
opposing the Sri Lankan government. In the latest threat a Tamil Nadu
political party has demanded that the Sri Lankan Deputy High Commission in
Chennai be closed over alleged attacks on Indian fishermen by the Sri
Lankan navy. The Sri Lankan Navy has however vehemently denied the
charges. Meanwhile Sri Lanka’s Deputy High Commissioner in Chennai V.
Krishnamoorthy told Daily Mirror online that with the end of the war Sri
Lankan refugees in Tamil Nadu have begun to return to the island
voluntarily. The Deputy High Commissioner said that so far there is no
organized program to send the refugees back to Sri Lanka but a large
number of refugees have returned voluntarily. (Daily
Mirror online : 13 July 2010).

Cabinet meets in
Kilinochchi today - This week's Cabinet meeting
will be held in Kilinochchi today (14) at the Security Forces
headquarters. It will be presided by President Mahinda Rajapaksa. This is
the first time a Cabinet meeting is being held in the Northern Province.
Cabinet meetings would be held in the outstations in the future, too,
government sources said. After today's Cabinet meeting, President
Rajapaksa will hold a discussion with the ministers on the development
activities so far carried out in the district since the end of the war
against the LTTE. The President is scheduled to address a public rally at
Iranamadu in the afternoon (Island
: 13 July 2010).

‘Peace
dynamics’ and national treachery - By S
Akurugoda, Melbourne, Australia As per a news item appeared in a local
news paper last week, the Sri Lanka government strongly disputed a move by
UNSG Ban-Ki-moon to link the closure of UNDP Regional Office in Colombo
with the on-going dispute over his hotly disputed bid to delve into
alleged war crime charges. Sources alleged that UNSG had made an obvious
bid to deceive the international community as part of a plan step up
pressure on Sri Lanka. This was nothing but a propaganda campaign to
tarnish Sri Lanka’s image, the report said, adding that the UN should
inquire into UNSG’s conduct. Few months after the elimination of the
LTTE terror from our soil, we had every reason to believe that the US and
their notable allies were rapidly making a case of war crimes against Sri
Lanka on the basis of the conduct of her armed forces as well as political
leadership. One of the motivations of this action is to cover-up their own
continuing armed conflicts on large scales, involving major humanitarian
catastrophes and causing the death of large numbers of civilians due to
military actions in Iraq, Afghanistan and in some areas of Pakistan. Two
self appointed analysts of ‘Sri Lankan conflict and peace dynamics and
think tanks’ from Colombo were also said to be a party to the US move.
What these ‘peace vendors’ basically said at a meeting, in Washington
D.C. with former Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Mr. Robert Blake, was what Blake
wanted them to say. On 28th August 2009, the said duos were reported
addressing a close-door meeting convened by the US Institute of Peace (USIP).
Another notable participant of this discussion was Teresita Schaffer of
The Centre for Strategic and international Studies, one of the former US
Ambassadors to Sri Lanka, who was very critical of the Sri Lankan
government during her tenure of office in Sri Lanka. On 25th August
2009, just few days before the commencement of the said close-door
meeting, Channel 4 Television in UK telecasted an unauthenticated video
showing the alleged extrajudicial execution of a Tamil prisoner by the
Security Forces in Sri Lanka. The video is alleged to have been made by
the propaganda unit of the LTTE and released to the Channel 4 by a group
calling itself ‘Journalists fro Democracy in Sri Lanka’ (Sri
Lanka News Online : 13 July 2010)

‘Rajarata
Rajini’ express train upto Omanthai soon -
The transport ministry yesterday said that the ‘Rajarata Rajini’
express train woulds be able to ply up to the former LTTE strongpoint -
Omanthai, in Vavuniya within the next month. Deputy Transport Minister
Rohana Dissanayake said with the completion of laying of the railway
tracks, steps will be taken to run the train up to the Omanthai station,
although it will take some three months to complete the building of the
railway stations. The train is now plying from Matara to Thandikulam, in
Vavuniya. “We have completed the building of some seven kilometres from
the eleven kilometres long track from Thandikulam to Omanthai. ”The
building of the Omanthai railway station commenced in July last year, but
there was a delay,” the minister added (Daily
Mirror : 13 July 2010).

Concessionary
housing loan programme for the North - The
concessionary housing loan programme for the benefit of the displaced
people in the North was launched in Kilinochchi at the ceremony held to
commence the reconstruction of the National Housing Development Authority
(NHDA) Kilinochchi district office building by the Chairman of NHDA,
Jayantha Samaraweera, with the participation of officials and people of
the area. The Minister of Construction, Engineering Services, Housing and
Common Amenities, Wimal Weerawansa had instructed the NHDA to complete
this work within four months, the chairman of the NHDA said. The
construction of the office building will be carried out by the National
Equipment and Machinery Organization which is an affiliate of the NHDA, at
a cost of Rs. three million utilizing the raw material and skilled masons
of the Kilinochchi area. Fifty families of the area were selected for
loans under this pilot project. Each selected family will be provided with
Rs. 325,000 on concessionary interest. The plots of lands for the selected
families will be given by the Government agent of Kilinochchi. These plots
will be provided with all infrastructure facilities such as access roads,
water supply etc. the NHDA said. The houses will be designed taking into
consideration the wishes of the house holder and the technical know-how
will be supplied by the NHDA. The total cost of the housing programme will
be Rs. 16.25 million. The construction will be completed within 4 months (The
Island : 13 July 2010).

Tamil
director arrested - Tamil Film director and
founder of Naam Thamizhar Iyakkam Seeman was arrested in Chennai today for
his alleged inflammatory speech at a protest meeting recently. Taking part
in a protest meet organised to condemn the Sri Lankan government in
Chennai a couple of days ago, Seeman had reportedly delivered a speech
against which a police complaint was filed. A case was filed against him
under Sec IPC 153 for inciting violence. This morning Seeman came to the
Chennai Press Club where he was arrested by the police. Speaking on the
occasion, Seeman however denied making such a speech
(Daily Mirror : 13 July 2010).

It
is time to "impeach" Ban Ki Moon for destroying the United
Nations.

Australia’s Headache,
Asylum Seekers - by Vajeera Warnakulasuriya,
Melbourne - The Prime Minister of Australia Hon.Julia Gillard, Dear Prime
Minister, Australia’s Headache, Asylum Seekers - Today the Government is
compelled to find a solution for this burning question on humanitarian
grounds, this has taken priority while other important issues that really
matter to the public at large has taken a back step. With the increase of
boats arriving to Australia, the Opposition and the media accuse the ALP
government’s weakness in the operation of assessing processes set out
from the outset. The crucial difference in the situation between last
government and this has been forgotten, ignored or missed by all sides!
During the last government there was a conflict between the Sri Lankan
Government forces and the LTTE Terrorist movement for nearly three
decades. Opportunistic wealthy Tamils and those who had financial backing
by the Tamil Diaspora had incessant movement by illegal boats at an easy
pace, because they never believed this conflict will ever be stopped with
the annihilation of the LTTE. All those who managed to set sail were
economic migrants who cashed in on the situation under the pretext of
bogus hindrances perpetrated on them by the Government and the Sinhalese.
Back then there was no urgency, as they could play the same card backed by
the corrupt UNHCR officials (there were a considerable number of Tamils
working for both UNHCR & the Australian Embassy) when ever a boat set
sail. With the unexpected end of the conflict the Tamil Diaspora knew time
is running out to play the same card and help to get as much as Tamils to
migrate to the West by illegal means. When you cry Wolf, Wolf repeatedly
the outcome is well known! (LankaWeb
: 12 July 2010).

Former LTTErs to get more
jobs - Prime Minister DM Jayaratne yesterday
said that the Government will provide more than 3,000 jobs to youth in the
Killinochchi and Mullaitivu districts who have had direct contacts with
the LTTE. He said that the defence authorities have identified more than
10,000 people who were closely associated with the LTTE and a special
program would be implemented to solve their problems. The Prime Minister
was addressing the Government officials in the Vavuniya district at the
Vavuniya District Secretariat yesterday. He said the Government expects to
obtain foreign assistance for the development of every sector in the
Province. “We have already commenced discussions with several countries
to get their assistance for the development of each and every sector in
the Northern Province”, he added. Prime Minister Jayaratne stressed that
the Indian Government extends its support for the development of the
fisheries harbour in the Northern Province. He said throughout the history
the Maha Sangha have played a pivotal role for the protection of the
country. They gave much wanted courage to President Mahinda Rajapaksa to
fight terrorism by organizing the people who truly love their Motherland.
The Prime Minister stressed that they would drew a master plan regarding
the development of all places of religious interest at Grama Niladhari and
Divisional Secretaries levels (Daily
News : 12 July 2010).

Where is Seeman? -
The Police have launched a search for filmmaker and Naam Thamizhar Iyakkam
chief Seeman, for allegedly making an inflammatory speech on the Sri
Lankan Tamils issue in Chennai on Saturday. “When a police team went in
search of him, Seeman was not at the house. His mobile phone too was found
switched off. We are looking for him,” a senior police officer was
quoted saying while Seeman’s lawyer insisted that his client was not on
the run. Speaking at a demonstration against the island government’s
alleged atrocities against Tamils, in Chennai Saturday, the director
reportedly came down heavily on countries opposing the UN panel set up to
probe allegations of war crimes in Sri Lanka. It is also said that Seeman,
who is a pro-LTTE activist, demanded that Sri Lanka should refrain from
using Chinese prisoners in reconstruction projects in the war-hit areas
and made some inflammatory remarks (IndiaGlitz,
Monday, July 12, 2010).

More soldiers receive
houses amidst row over repayment plan for Ipologama housing recipients -
The government says no political issue should be made of its on-going
efforts to provide houses to the armed forces personnel, disabled
combatants and to the families of those killed in action. Lakshman
Hulugalle, Director General of Media Centre for National Security (MCNS)
says the Opposition seems to be making a bid to disrupt the housing
project. Hulugalle and Major General Prasad Samarasinghe, former Military
Spokesman say the government will continue with the project aimed at
building 700 houses in many parts of the country, Addressing the media at
the MCNS last Friday (July 9), DG Hulugalle announced the completion of 25
housing units in the Kandy District under the first phase of the 700
housing unit project. President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday handed over
the housing units built in Kandy at a cost of Rs. 22 million (Island
: 12 July 2010).

CB Opens fourth
provincial office in Jaffna - The Central Bank
of Sri Lanka (CBSL) opened its Northern Provincial Office in Jaffna
recently. The provincial office was declared open on 4th July under the
patronage of G.A Chandrasiri. The newly opened Provincial Office, the
Central Bank's forth provincial office, would be fully functional within
the next couple of months, and it would provide fullest advantage to the
community in the Northern region. The Provincial Office will conduct
surveys of the progress in the region, while it will be extending
assistance for the banks in the region. Religious Dignitaries, Dr. Mrs.
Ranee Jayamaha, Advisor to HE the President on Banking, Mr. K.G.D.D.
Dheerasinghe, Senior Deputy Governor of Central Bank, Mr. P.D.J. Fernando,
Deputy Governor of Central Bank, and other Senior Officials of the Central
Bank, Mr. K. Ganesh, Jaffna Government Agent, Major General Mahinda
Haturusinghe, Jaffna SF Commander, Mrs. Yogeswary Patkunarajah, Hon. Mayor
of Jaffna Municipal Council, Mrs. P. Sivalingam, Regional Commissioner,
Jaffna, Senior Officials from the Banks in the Northern Province, and
Commercial and Industrial Representatives were also present at this event (sri
Lanka Defence Ministry : 12 July 2010).

We are not against THE
UN, only the panel of Ban Ki-moon: PM - Prime
Minister D.M. Jayaratne said that Sri Lanka was only opposed to the panel
that had been appointed by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to advise
him on human rights situation in Sri Lanka and not against the UN
Organization as a whole. He pointed out that the UN Secretary General
could not take such a decision against a sovereign state. He was speaking
at a discussion held at the Vavuniya District Secretariat on Saturday (10)
to discuss the renovations to be undertaken on places of religious worship
in the North devastated by the war. “Death is inevitable in any war and
it is not just the soldiers who die in these battles but civilian
casualties too cannot be avoided. A recent example of the uncetainties of
war involved the Americans and the bombs dropped by them aimed at
Afghanistan which actually fell in Pakistan killing thousands of people.
If Mr. Ban Ki- moon wants to appoint panels to inquire into war atrocities
he should concentrate on America before turning his guns on Sri Lanka,”
the Prime Minister said adding this was not the time to pressurize Sri
Lanka when peace has just dawned in the country. Minister Jayaratne,
chaired the meeting held at the Vavuniya Urban Council Cultural centre. He
then had handed over cheques to religious leaders belonging to various
faiths whose building had been damaged or destroyed during the war with
the LTTE so that they could begin restoration work immediately (Daily
Mirror ; 12 July 2010).

Eastern provincial
athletic meet at Trincomalee - The Eastern
Province Athletic Meet was commenced on 6th July at the Mc Heyzier
Stadium, Trincomalee, participating hundreds of school athletes
representing all the school in the province. Governor of the Eastern
Province, Rear Admiral Mohan Wijewickrama was the Chief Guest at this
event. Secretary to the Ministry of Education, officials from the
Department of Education, Trincomalee and large number of teachers and
students representing the schools of the province attended at the event (Sri
Lanka Defence Ministry : 12 July 2010).

Civilians allowed entry
to Palaly HSZ for annual pooja at Vasavilan kovil -
Gnanavairavar Hindu temple at Vasavilan south within the Palaly High
Security Zone (HSZ) Jaffna held its annual Pooja on Sunday 4th of June
after many years with participation of a large crowd of devotees residing
in neighbouring areas. The kovil remained isolated in absence of civilians
due to security restrictions however in response to a request made by
Chief Kurukkal, Commander Security Forces-Jaffna Major General Mahinda
Hathurusinghe took steps to relax the restrictions for devotees aspiring
to recommence their religious performance at the Gnanavairavar Hindu
temple. Prior to commencement of the ceremony, Army troops of the 515
Brigade cleaned the kovil building, its surrounding and the access route
to make the place suitable for veneration. Further, Army arranged water
and other necessary facilities at the kovil premises for civilians
entering the HSZ for religious purposes. Army officers and other ranks
serving in the area were present during the ceremony (sri
Lanka Defence Ministry : 12 July 2010).

Top
UN officials’ contradictions

Liberal Party Statement
on Sri Lanka – July 8,2010 - By Ira De Silva,
Canada - I have just read your statement on the Liberal party website. To
be honest, I do not read anything published on your “party website”
– this outlandish statement was sent to me by an “offended”
Canadian. My comment to you is that the appointment of this panel is NOT a
step forward and is causing resentment at every level of the entire
population in Sri Lanka. According to reports from Sri Lanka it has served
to unite the people of Sri Lanka in support of the government and against
the UN and the western countries who are pushing for the “panel”
ignoring their own violations of human rights, indiscriminate killings and
the creation of refugees in other countries. What is disheartening is that
actions such as this panel, set up at the dictates of the west, is pushing
Sri Lanka away from it’s traditional allies such as Canada. Although you
may have various degrees from universities and the masses in Sri Lanka do
not, they are still aware of the following: This panel is not a UN panel
but a panel created by the Secretary General without legitimate authority
in violation of the UN Charter and the rights of individual members of the
UN. Contrary to the Charter, it seeks to interfere in the internal matters
of a member state (LankaWeb
: 11 July 2010).

Statement by Canada’s
Liberal Party on the UN panel on Sri Lanka - by
Asoka Weerasinghe, Canada - Dear Michael and Bob: You two have incensed me
with your ‘Statement by the Liberal Party of Canada on the appointment
of a UN panel on Sri Lanka’. *See who is talking! -You Liberals brought
misery to all Sri Lankans for 13 long years by letting the Tamil ‘Snow’
Tigers in Canada collect two million dollars a month for 13 years to stuff
their war-chest to buy sophisticated war weapons, which contributed to the
terrorists shipping 11 ship loads of weapons during the ‘Ceasefire’
period between February 2002 and January 2008, to prolong that unnecessary
war and killing the innocent civilians in the thousands. By doing just
that you forfeited your right to speak on Sri Lanka and tell them what to
do (LankaWeb
: 11 July 2010).

Ki-moon chopping the UN
to spite Colombo? - by Malinda Seneviratne - A
few days ago, I got an email, a note that had been blogged on a website.
It was titled ‘Quo Warranto Mr. Ban Ki-moon’. The author calls himself
‘Vichara’. Inquiries indicate that it has not been published anywhere.
The spur of course is UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s appointment of
a panel of experts to advise him on alleged human rights violations in Sri
Lanka. Now, as many, including myself, have pointed out, while Ki-moon
calls it an advisory panel, some of the panelists have already re-worded
their brief to read ‘investigative’. There are other objections,
including the fact that Ki-moon has been selective in the matter of
seeking advice, for he has neither appointed any such panel to advise him
on Iraq, Afghanistan and Gaza (for example), nor shown any expertise
himself, not to require such experts to brief him on relevant issues. But
first, let me share Vichara’s views. ‘Qui Warranto?’ asks Vichara,
or ‘What authority?’ Vichara cites Article No 1 of the UN Charter, the
one about maintaining international peace and security, and therefore, the
need to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal
of threats to peace, suppression of aggression etc. This, Vichara points
out, correctly refers to international disputes. He shows, moreover, that
Article 7 is a limitation clause, and prohibits the UN from intervening in
matters within the domestic jurisdiction of any State, or require members
to submit such matters to settlement. The right/responsibility to protect
crusade is thus an exercise in correction, what some people believe is
this impotency-generating clause, although one observes that the powerful
never required any such ‘authority’ to bomb and maim in the name of
world peace, or upholding justice, and that, the UN has, by and large,
acted as accessory after the fact of genocide (Nation
: 11 July 2010).

UN and EU riding together
- by Eymard de Silva Wijeyeratne - Hurling
personal insults at Ban Ki Moon, Louise Arbour, Lyn Pascoe and Bernard
Savage, with the use of puns on their names, is not a solution to the
problem that Sri Lanka faces. Yet, the conduct of these foreign
functionaries and many others including Mr. Robert Blake, former US
Ambassador to Sri Lanka and David Miliband leaves room for us to query
their motivations in condemning Sri Lanka’s military defeat of the LTTE.
Their current attitude must be examined in conjunction with their earlier
position that the LTTE was invincible. Though the government of Sri Lanka
should exercise restraint in dealing with these questionable
interventions, the citizens of Sri Lanka enjoy the inalienable right
(necessarily human) to condemn moral turpitude that parades itself under
the guise of a rubric of divinely ordained righteousness. The decision of
the EU to withdraw the GSP + concession is not based on a rational and
fair analysis based on purely trade-related considerations. It is a
deviously contrived argument used by a colonial mentality that is
hell-bent to act in concert with the United Nations, the United States,
The Dublin Tribunal, the International Crisis Group (ICG), the Diaspora
domiciled in Europe and the US, the local self-disinherited Diaspora who
are ever ready to sell their birthright for a mess of pottage, and NGOs
both foreign and local. The insidious aspect of this intervention is that
it implicitly declares a preferential option for the LTTE, with total
disregard for Sri Lanka’s sovereignty (Island
: 11 July 2010).

UNSG’s Panel on Sri
Lanka - by Mahinda Gunasekera - Hon. Michael
Ignatief, MP Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Liberal Party;
Dear Mr. Michael Ignatief, UNSG’s Panel on Sri Lanka - With reference to
the statement made by you in Shanghai supporting the appointment of a UN
Panel on Sri Lanka which has been published in the Liberal Party’s
website on July 8, 2010, and your concern for Canadian families whom you
state were deeply affected by the conflict in Sri Lanka which ended last
year. Let me at the outset point out that it is not a UN Panel but a Panel
appointed by the UN Secretary General on his own initiative exceeding the
powers vested in him by the UN Charter, without the sanction of either the
General Assembly, Security Council or the Human Rights Council. In fact,
matters relating to the conflict were discussed in the June 2009 sessions
of the UNHRC in Geneva and a decision was taken by a vote of 29 to 12 to
not intervene in the internal affairs of Sri Lanka pertaining to the
military action taken against the designated terrorist group called the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) also known as the Tamil Tigers.
Furthermore, Sri Lanka is an independent, sovereign member state of the
United Nations which has appointed its own quasi-judicial ‘Commission on
Lessons Learned and Reconciliation’ to look into the last seven years of
the conflict. The eight member Commission is comprised of distinguished
citizens with four drawn from the majority Sinhalese community and two
each from the two main minority groups, namely, the Tamil and Muslim
communities. Sri Lanka as a sovereign, independent country has the
indisputable right under the UN Charter to act in its best judgment on
issues dealing with internal matters especially where they relate to
maintenance of peace and security. The UNSG’s move is tantamount to
pursuing an interventionist role against a member state, and done in bad
faith without proper authority (LankaWeb
: 11 July 2010).

Ki-moon chopping the UN
to spite Colombo? - by Malinda Senevitathna - A
few days ago, I got an email, a note that had been blogged on a website.
It was titled ‘Quo Warranto Mr. Ban Ki-moon’. The author calls himself
‘Vichara’. Inquiries indicate that it has not been published anywhere.
The spur of course is UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s appointment of
a panel of experts to advise him on alleged human rights violations in Sri
Lanka. Now, as many, including myself, have pointed out, while Ki-moon
calls it an advisory panel, some of the panelists have already re-worded
their brief to read ‘investigative’. There are other objections,
including the fact that Ki-moon has been selective in the matter of
seeking advice, for he has neither appointed any such panel to advise him
on Iraq, Afghanistan and Gaza (for example), nor shown any expertise
himself, not to require such experts to brief him on relevant issues. But
first, let me share Vichara’s views. ‘Qui Warranto?’ asks Vichara,
or ‘What authority?’ Vichara cites Article No 1 of the UN Charter, the
one about maintaining international peace and security, and therefore, the
need to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal
of threats to peace, suppression of aggression etc. This, Vichara points
out, correctly refers to international disputes. He shows, moreover, that
Article 7 is a limitation clause, and prohibits the UN from intervening in
matters within the domestic jurisdiction of any State, or require members
to submit such matters to settlement (Nation
: 11 July 2010).

Govt assures security at
UN offices - The Government has assured
security at the UN Head Office in Colombo and its other agencies. No
security concerns have been raised due to the protests by the National
Freedom Front (NFF). Protesting against UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s
advisory panel to look into accountability issues during the last stages
of the military operation to crush the LTTE, Minister of Housing and
Engineering Services Wimal Weerawansa is on a fast unto death campaign.
Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa told the Sunday Observer that there
was no issue of security threats to the UN Offices or its staffers.
“The Government had protected UN officials working in the North and the
East during the military operation. We gave them the fullest security
protection during those difficult days. Now there is no such security
threat in the country,” he said. Rajapaksa said that the campaign
was a peaceful protest and that such protests were held even in front of
the UN Head Office in New York. “ There is no reason to think that the
security at UN offices and that of its staff are at stake”, he
said. The Defence Secretary said that he had alerted the UN Resident
Coordinator Neil Buhne to inform him about any security concern but there
was no such complaint. “The protest was peaceful and the
protestors did not disrupt the day-to-day work of the UN offices”, he
said adding that security at the UN and of its staffers has been fully
guaranteed (Sunday
Observer : 11 July 2010).

Sequel to Sri Lanka’s
vehement opposition: Top UN officials’ contradictions -
Several top officials of the United Nations (UN), including its Secretary
General Ban Ki-moon, have conducted themselves in a questionable manner,
contradicting their own statements after Sri Lanka vehemently objected to
the UN’s decision to appoint a three-member committee on alleged war
crimes. Though the UN founded in 1945 aimed at facilitating cooperation in
international law, international security, economic development, social
progress, human rights, and achieving world peace, Ki-moon and certain UN
officials here and abroad have conducted themselves in a highly
questionable manner during and after Sri Lanka’s relentless battle
against terrorism. Following the fast unto death campaign by National
Freedom Front (NFF) Leader Wimal Weerawansa and the peaceful protest close
to the UN office in Bauddhaloka Mawatha near Thunmulla Junction, certain
UN officials made desperate attempts to link the developments in Colombo
with a previous decision to close the United Nations Development Program (UNDP)
office in Sri Lanka. The Government strongly disputed a move by Ki-moon to
link the closure of the UNDP Regional Office in Colombo with the protests
against the UN in Colombo over his arbitrary decision to delve into
alleged war crime charges against Sri Lanka’s valiant Security Forces (Sunday
Observer : 11 July 2010).

Prabhakaran’s mother
can visit Tamil Nadu for treatment - The Madras
High Court has granted unconditional permission to Parvathi Velupillai,
mother of the late LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran, to visit India for
medical treatment. Since being denied entry to Tamil Nadu in May, Mrs.
Velupillai, 79 years, has been hospitalised in Velvettithurai, Jaffna. She
arrived in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, on April 16, from Malaysia, but was denied
a visa. According to her guardian, former Member of Parliament N. K.
Sivajilingam, Mrs. Velupillai’s condition has not improved since she
entered hospital two months ago (Sunday
Times : 11 July 2010).

Malaysians of Jaffna
origin hail peace-building measures - Malaysian
Tamils of Jaffna origin have praised the peacebuilding measures under way
in the Jaffna peninsula. A 30-member group of Malaysian Tamils of Jaffna
origin toured Jaffna and observed the rehabilitation and reconstruction
activities carried out in the region. They also held a meeting with the
Jaffna Security Forces Commander Major General Mahinda Hathurusinghe who
briefed them on the post-conflict situation in the peninsula. Maj.
Nanayakkara told the Sunday Observer that the 30-member Malaysian Tamils
of Jaffna origin were the third generation in Jaffna and they visited the
land of their forefathers after decades. Dato Kanagaratnam, a lawyer by
profession led the Malaysian team which included those serving in the
Malaysian Armed Forces and professionals in various fields along with
members from the business community. The Malaysians also held talks with
the Government Agent Jaffna K. Ganesh and gathered information on making
investments in Jaffna. They also visited the sites of religious worship
and other prime landmarks in the peninsula."The Malaysian delegation
also presented 4,000 books to the Jaffna Public Library and walked around
the refurbished Jaffna library building," Major Lal Nanayakkara said.
The delegation showed great satisfaction over the post-conflict peace
building efforts, Maj. Nanayakkara said (Sunday
Observer : 11 July 2010).

Australia gets tough with
asylum seekers - The new Australian Government
has warned that bogus asylum seekers would be deported according to
reports from Australia. Sri Lankan Tamils who attempted to enter Australia
by illegal means are being held at the Tamjung Pinang detention centre in
Indonesia months after their boat was seized by the Indonesian
authorities. The Australian Government of former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
took a tough stance against asylum seekers and according to the Australian
Immigration Department 1,050 people were adversely affected by the visa
freez on Afghan and Sri Lankan asylum seekers. Of the 1,050 asylum seekers
866 were Afghans and 184 were Sri Lankans. Earlier, the new Australian
Prime Minister Ms. Julia Gillard called upon the East Timor and New
Zealand to help in setting up Centres for asylum seekers. However, there
was a negative response from both countries, informed sources said. The
Australian Prime Minister has also unveiled plans to curb illegal
immigration, while considering the appeals by genuine asylum seekers, the
sources said. Under the new coalition policy an asylum seeker who
deliberately destroys his or her identity documents is not a refugee. It
also makes it tougher for asylum seekers who arrive by boat to be
resettled in Australia the sources said (Sunday
Observer : 11 July 2010).

Hasalaka Hero alias
Corporal Gamini Kularatne: Gallant hero defends Elephant Pass - The
saga of Corporal Gamini Kularatne alias Hasalaka Hero may be familiar to
everyone in the country as the nation remembers him after the great
victory achieved by our heroic troops against the LTTE in May 2009. People
now can see the place where this hero sacrificed his life in Elephant Pass
and the monster bulldozer that overran the Elephant Pass camp in July
1991, since the place is now accessible to all. But his death would have
been just another one if his colleague, Rifleman Rovel did not see the
supreme sacrifice he made on July 13, 1991 and told it to Major
Karunaratne who was in charge of the Elephant Pass camp at that time. The
isolated battle they fought for almost 24 days without any outside support
goes down in history as one of pitched battles the Sri Lanka Army had
fought against the LTTE during the three-decade conflict. 19 years after
that valiant battle was fought in Elephant Pass, Major General (Retd)
Sanath Karunaratne, now the Chief Security Officer of the Port Authority,
recalls the saga to the Sunday Observer in memory of Corporal Gamini
Kularatne and all those who sacrificed their lives in that great battle to
defend Elephant Pass camp. The date July 9, 1991 was a significant date
for the troops in Elephant Pass camp. Around 9 pm after dinner Commanding
Officer of the 6 Sinha Regiment battalion deployed in Elephant Pass, Major
Sanath Karunaratne, his second in command (2IC ) Major Lalith Buddhadasa,
Artillery Officer Captain Dhamma Mudunkotuwa and Adjutant, Captain Ramesh
Fernando were playing cards in their command post (Sunday
Observer : 11 July 2010).

Lankan forces never
committed war crimes - PM - Sri Lanka does not
in any way oppose the United Nations nor its activities. What we oppose is
the UN Secretary General's unilateral decision to appoint an advisory
panel on Sri Lanka, said Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne in Vavuniya. He
stressed that the Sri Lankan Forces had never committed war crimes in
their effort to liberate thousands of civilians who were forcibly held by
the LTTE terrorists. The Prime Minister was addressing the Government
officials in the Vavuniya District Secretariat after launching the
national program to develop the places of religious worship in the
Northern province. Prime Minister Jayaratne said the country can not give
into the pressure of an individual. "The NGOs which accused the
Government of committing war crimes during the last stage of the battle
against terrorism do not have proper evidence to prove that the Security
Forces committed war crimes. "The people of this country should be
united to defeat all forces that stand against the country protect the
country's dignity, he said. He asked why the UN Secretary General failed
to look into war crimes perpetrated by the US by shelling Pakistan.
Hundreds of people were killed when the missiles aimed at Afghanistan's
terrorist targets fell into the Pakistani territory" , he added. He
stressed that the resettlement of 40,000 people would be completed within
next six months provided that the area where these people are to be
resettled is cleared of mines. The Premier added that the delay in
resettling the people is that they want to live in their original places
in the Mullaitivu district. He added that these areas are heavily dotted
with mines and a great effort is being made by the military and other
organisations to clear mines and booby traps from this areas soon (Sunday
Observer ; 11 July 2010).

Govt rejects allegations
of Navy harming Indian fishermen - The
Government has vehemently rejected the Tamil Nadu-based allegation that
the Sri Lanka Navy opened fire at the Indian fishermen in Lankan waters.
Media Minister and Defence Spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella said such
allegations were brought up to sabotage the goodwill between Sri Lanka and
India. "These allegations are baseless and we can reassure that Sri
Lanka Navy personnel had not opened fire at any Indian fishermen", he
said. Minister Rambukwella who visited India with President Mahinda
Rajapaksa last month said the issue was discussed at length at their
meeting with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. "President
Rajapaksa had specifically explained the measures taken by the Government
to safeguard the fishermen of both countries. He also discussed the
implementation of a joint strategy to ensure their safety and to solve
their issues", he said. According to Minister Rambukwella, both
leaders had agreed that the issues were getting aggravated after Sri Lanka
relaxed the fishing restrictions imposed during the military operation
against the LTTE. "There are no fishing restrictions and fishermen
from both countries are actively engaged in fishing. They are not bothered
about territorial waters and restrictions and only want a good catch. It
is time for both countries to work out a strategy to prevent such
issues", he said (Sunday
Observer : 11 July 2010).

UN
chief should disband the so-called "Advisory Panel"

Ban Ki Moon ensure LTTE
atrocities are investigated first - by Shenali
Waduge - If throughout thirty years the UN Secretary General is clueless
of what has been happening in a member country called Sri Lanka, it may be
best that he first ask his expert panel to investigate & apprise him
of all LTTE atrocities first. Given that the LTTE is a terrorist
organization, banned in all the major countries of the world & listed
in the UN list of shame, it is only fair that the UN Secretary General is
fully aware of all of the atrocities committed by the LTTE. It is
nevertheless surprising that the UNSG has no knowledge of these heinous
crimes committed by the LTTE or maybe these documents are missing. Given
that his speeches are being written by another & these carry various
erroneous statements similar to the one about the UN envoy in Sri Lanka
being recalled & the closure of the UNDP office in Sri Lanka following
the fast unto death by a Sri Lankan minister, we too wonder exactly what
the UNSG knows about the situation in Sri Lanka during the LTTE terror
reign & the post-LTTE where peace has prevailed, displaced have been
resettled & introduced to new lifestyles, LTTE soldiers have been
rehabilitated & the Government even arranging marriages for those
ex-combatants & even arranging housing for these newly weds. Can any
Government fresh out of a conflict situation boast of such visible changes…where
people today can travel freely without free of suicide attacks, roadside
bombs, curfews etc. (LankaWeb
: 10 July 2010).

Ban Ki-Moon betrays his
agreement with President Rajapakse - by H. L. D.
Mahindapala - UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon, was warned earlier by Sri
Lanka that any interference by foreign agents will exacerbate the delicate
political atmosphere prevailing in the immediate and sensitive aftermath
of the post-Vadukoddai War. When he met President Mahinda Rajapakse soon
after the War ended in May 2009 it was agreed in a Joint Statement (issued
on May 23, 2009) that the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) will set up a
mechanism to look into what went wrong and how to remedy any past
mistakes. As stated by Ban in his latest statement the “objectives (of
the Joint Statement) include the further fostering of reconciliation and
related issues as well as reflecting the commitment by Sri Lanka to the
promotion and protection of human rights and the importance of
accountability in order to continue the strengthening of peace and
development in that country. The United Nations recognizes that the
responsibility in this regard is that of the Government of Sri Lanka.”
Accordingly, President Rajapakse fulfilled his part of the agreement by
setting up the Commission on Lesson Learnt and Reconciliation (CLLR) (LankaWeb
: 10 July 2010).

Ban Ki Moons as the UN
Secretary General should not act on the dictates of a few member States,
as he takes authority from all member States -
By Charles.S.Perera - Now we know who were behind Ban Ki Moons ‘ move
against Sri Lanka to appoint a three-man Panel to advise him whether there
had been violation of human rights by the Armed Forces of Sri Lanka in the
last phase of its military operations against the terrorists. Germany, UK,
France, USA, Italy, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Romania, Norway and EU
are obviously the prime movers of the idea of a Panel to Ban Ki Moon.
These same countries voted against the resolution submitted by Sri Lanka
at the Human Rights Council in Geneva on the 27 May, 2009. Very Strangely
in Tamil Nadu a political party Hindu Makkal Kachi also has protested
against the President Mahinda Rajapakse, for not allowing a UN Probe. Like
minded people flock together ? In the statement issued by the Colombo
based diplomatic Missions of the nine countries and EU, it is state that
the manifestation before the UN Office in Colombo is “harmful to Sri
Lanka’s reputation “ in the world. But what have these countries done
to enhance the reputation of Sri Lanka which got rid of a ruthless group
of terrorist by its own strategies netting in the terrorists leadership
which every one thought was “invincible “, and carried out a
tremendous rescue operation to bring in thousands of Tamil Civil
population kept as a human shield by terrorist (LankaWeb
: 10 July 2010).

Ban clarifies panel
mandate - UN Secretary-General Ban ki-moon has
reiterated that the three member panel appointed by him on Sri Lanka has
been set up to advise him with regard to taking forward the objectives of
the Joint Statement of 23 May 2009 between Sri Lanka and the UN and is not
an investigative body. In a new statement released from New York, the UN
Chief said that the Panel itself will advise him on the modalities,
applicable international standards and comparative experience relevant to
an accountability process. It will be a resource available to assist the
Government of Sri Lanka and the Commission on Lessons Learnt and
Reconciliation in applying the international best practice in this regard,
he said. “These objectives include the further fostering of
reconciliation and related issues, as well as reflecting the commitment by
Sri Lanka to the promotion and protection of human rights and the
importance of accountability in order to continue the strengthening of
peace and development in that country,” he said. The Secretary-General
believes the strong reaction to his establishment of a Panel of Experts on
accountability in Sri Lanka is not warranted and called on the government
to take urgent action to normalize conditions around the United Nations
offices in Colombo so as to ensure the continuation of the vital work of
the Organization to assist the people of Sri Lanka. (Daily
Mirror online : 10 July 2010).

Nothing against UN –
Ven Elle Gunawansa Thera - Only opposed to
Advisory Panel: Sri Lanka has nothing against the United Nations
Organization. It is only opposed to the so-called Advisory Panel appointed
by its Secretary General Ban Ki-moon at his own whim, Ven Elle Gunawansa
Thera said. Ven Gunawansa Thera said Sri Lanka is not ungrateful to forget
the financial assistance provided by the UN to uplift the living standards
of poor and under privileged community in rural areas. UN assistance
specially focused at the poor children would always be appreciated by all
citizens in this country. Ven Gunawansa Thera was speaking at a media
conference at Sawsiripaya auditorium yesterday organized to support the
fast-unto-death campaign staged by National Freedom Front Chairman Wimal
Weerawansa. It has been very clear that the appointment of his Advisory
Panel is on the needs of worldwide LTTE sympathizers who supported
separatism right throughout. “We cannot give into their desires,” the
Thera stressed. He said that he was unhappy about the action of other
political party leaders for not supporting the anti-Moon campaign launched
by Weerawansa. The people will realize who the real patriots and
non-patriots are, he said (Daily
News ; 10 July 2010).

Exclusive interview on UN
compound row We believe in working with global community, says Gota -
Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa says Sri Lanka remains committed to
the UN ideals and strongly believes in working with the international
community in a post-LTTE era, contrary to the perception among a section
of the global community. The outspoken official, who is widely credited
with spearheading the overall military strategy against the LTTE, says the
time is ripe for a partnership for progress. Eradication of LTTE terrorism
at a tremendous cost to the country, he said, had given all stakeholders
an opportunity to work in unison for one goal. In a candid exclusive
interview with The Sunday Island where he pulled no punches, Defence
Secretary Rajapaksa accused an influential section within the UN of
exploiting the ongoing protest outside the UN compound at the Bauddhaloka
Mawatha compound to undermine Sri Lanka. Could they be so naďve to blame
the closure of UNDP Regional Centre for Asia and the Pacific situated at
the Independence Avenue on the ongoing protest at Bauddhaloka Mawatha? An
irate Rajapaksa said that the Colombo-based diplomatic community and the
Sri Lankan government had been aware of the decision to shift that office
to Bangkok for some time. Asked whether the government take up this issue
with the UN, a smiling Rajapakasa pointed out that UN Office of the
Resident Coordinator had rectified the erroneous statement attributed to
the UNSG (Island
: 10 July 2010).

Ban Ki Lands on Moon to
Scrutinize Sri Lanka’s War Crimes - by Asoka
Perera, PhD, Toronto, Canada - The appointment of three member UN panel by
Secretary General of United Nations instantly reminded me the similar
panel appointed by former Secretary General Kofi Anan to investigate the
possession of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq by UN security council
just after the 9/11 incident in USA. As a measure of countering global
terrorism, UN Security Council was supported by member states to carry out
the mission led by US and UK. Panel returned after fact finding mission in
Iraq empty handed, but the hidden agenda of US and UK in demolishing Iraq
regime continued to follow on the tract that US and UK have already agreed
upon. Mission accomplished, American puppet was installed in Iraq and now
operation continues in Afghanistan under the pre-text of capturing Bin
Laden. This incident clearly indicated that UN panels are not truly
appointed for fact finding or advisory purposes when it comes to terrorism
matters, but to gradually destabilize and finally demolish the sovereign
states whose states policies are not in line with west agendas. West led
by US and UK demand other individual states either supportive of their
agenda or stay neutral (Lankaweb
: 10 July 2010).

UN chief should disband
Advisory Panel - Govt - The Government’s
stance is UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon should disband the UN special
advisory panel as it is baseless to appoint such a panel. The UN has to
reconsider this issue, Ministers Maithripala Sirisena, Nimal Siripala de
Silva and Prof GL Peiris said yesterday. The Ministers addressing the
media at the Sri Lanka Freedom Party Head Office said Sri Lanka maintains
a good rapport with the UN and other countries. “As Sri Lanka is also a
member of UN we are bound by agreement on safeguarding human rights. Sri
Lanka as an independent country has proved that human rights of every
citizen has been protected to the maximum,” they said. Several countries
including China and Russia have exerted pressure on Ban Ki-moon to disband
the special advisory panel appointed by him on his own accord. The Sri
Lanka Freedom Party has always maintained a balanced foreign policy. The
Non-Aligned Summit was also held in Sri Lanka as a result of this,
Minister Sirisena said. Prof Peiris said the UN office in Colombo is not
closed and office activities are carried out by its staff. All activities
carried out by the UN office in Colombo continue. UN Sri Lanka
Representative Neil Bhune has been told to come to the UN Headquarters for
discussions, the Minister said (Daily
News : 10 July 2010).

EX-LTTE CHIEF“KP”:
THE TIGER WHO CHANGED HIS STRIPES - The tiger,
they say, does not change its stripes. The leopard too won’t change its
spots. This inability or refusal to change is certainly true of the four
–legged felines. There are some – perpetually paranoid- who would say
this is applicable to the near extinct two–legged tiger in Sri Lanka
too. “Once a tiger always a tiger.”In fact there is a proverbial
saying in Tamil “Puli Pasithalum Pullai Thinnaathu”(even when hungry
the tiger will not eat grass). Whatever truth these sayings may seek to
convey, the reality in Sri Lanka is that of many members and ex-members of
the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) changing their stripes.
Ferocious felines are transformed from carnivores into herbivores. The
most famous examples of this successful transition were until recently
Vinayagamurthy Muraleetharan alias Karuna and Sivanesathurai
Chandrakanthan alias Pillaiyan. The former is a Parliamentarian and Deputy
minister while the latter is Chief minister of the Eastern Provincial
Council. There are also innumerable instances of nondescript Tigers cadres
dropping out of the movement and embarking on a new , violence free family
life. Thousands of former Tigers have sought refuge in foreign countries.
Most of them lead quiet, dignified lives contributing immensely to society
at large. The latest and brightest star on this firmament is Selvarasa
Pathmanathan alias KP. The man who was at one time the chief arms procurer
of the LTTE went on to become the international chief of the Tigers. After
the demise of Tiger supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran, KP succeeded him on
grounds of seniority. In a re-structured LTTE Pathmanathan alias KP was
appointed the “Thalaimai Seyalar” or chief secretary. This post was
akin to being leader.This elevation did not come easily as an overseas
cabal led by Perinbanayagam Sivaparan alias Nediyavan opposed it bitterly.
However KP’s moment of glory as head of the LTTE was very brief. In a
sudden operation amounting to an “extraordinary rendition”
Pathmanathan was apprehended in Malaysia and transported to Sri Lanka last
August. He has been a “guest” of the Rajapaksa regime since then (Daily
Mirror : 10 July 2010).

IT IS TIME TO “IMPEACH”
BAM KI MOON FOR DESTROYING UNITED NATIONS - By
Hasaka Ratnamalala - United States and some countries at European Union,
collaboration with Secretary General’s office are trying to find new
ways to interfere the sovereignty of member nations. This time UNSG Ban Ki
moon is directly acting as a puppet of some western Nations; further more
he and his backers are demanding the Sri Lankan government to violate the
freedom of expression of Sri Lankans by banning protests against Ban Ki
Moon. A protest which started by Wimal Weerawansa a Sri Lankan patriot few
days ago is a peaceful “Satyagraha” against Ban Ki Moon for appointing
a panel of three to advise him on alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka. But
some pro western political pundits claim, that these types of things have
to be resolve diplomatically. Yes, but the question is did Mr. Ban Ki Moon
has left any room for diplomacy? Sri Lanka’s top diplomat at UN Dr.
Kohana who happened to be the former chief protocol officer of United
Nations and claims that Ban Ki Moon is trying to create a “precedent”
to create an alternate way to interfere sovereignty of member nations. Dr.
Kohana who is an authority on UN laws is in the view that Ban Ki Moon is
acting unlawfully, what other evidence we need that the doors are closed
for diplomacy (HR
Blog on Sri Lanka : 10 July 2010).

Protests and the United
Nations - The people of Sri Lanka are enraged at
the appointment of a Panel of Experts by the United Nations Secretary
General (UNSG) to advise him on Sri Lanka. Civil society organizations,
political parties and the Government have expressed their displeasure and
disapproval of the measure. In doing so the UNSG has been influenced by
certain officials of the UN whose partisan attitude towards Sri Lanka is
well known. The fact that the UNSG has thought it not appropriate to
constitute and seek advice from similar panels when there were large scale
violations of human rights, even amounting to genocide, committed by
powerful members of the UN makes one wonder whether he is also biased
against Sri Lanka. Going by official records of the UN there has been no
adverse decisions taken by any of its official bodies such as the Security
Council, the General Assembly or the UN Human Rights Council. In fact the
latter has made a strong approval of the conduct of Sri Lanka when there
were attempts to pass resolutions against Sri Lanka in that body over the
conduct of the Humanitarian Mission of the Armed Forces (Daily
News : 10 July 2010).

Protest against UN panel:
Call for Int’l writers to muster support - The
Janatha Lekhaka Peramuna representing writers, artistes and intellectuals
has requested the Asia-Africa Writers Association and the Asia-Africa
Solidarity Association based in Egypt to muster support among its
membership in Asian and African countries to protest against the three
member advisory panel appointed by the UN Secretary General to advise him
on human rights violations in Sri Lanka during the final stage of the
humanitarian operations to liberate people from terrorism. The memorandum
signed by its General Secretary Gunasena Vithana has said the panel has
been appointed by the UN Secretary General at his own will without the
consent of the UN Organization to satisfy the whims and fancies of
international forces arraigned against Sri Lanka (Daily
News : 10 July 2010).

Protests and the United
Nations - The people of Sri Lanka are enraged at
the appointment of a Panel of Experts by the United Nations Secretary
General (UNSG) to advise him on Sri Lanka. Civil society organizations,
political parties and the Government have expressed their displeasure and
disapproval of the measure. In doing so the UNSG has been influenced by
certain officials of the UN whose partisan attitude towards Sri Lanka is
well known. The fact that the UNSG has thought it not appropriate to
constitute and seek advice from similar panels when there were large scale
violations of human rights, even amounting to genocide, committed by
powerful members of the UN makes one wonder whether he is also biased
against Sri Lanka. Going by official records of the UN there has been no
adverse decisions taken by any of its official bodies such as the Security
Council, the General Assembly or the UN Human Rights Council. In fact the
latter has made a strong approval of the conduct of Sri Lanka when there
were attempts to pass resolutions against Sri Lanka in that body over the
conduct of the Humanitarian Mission of the Armed Forces (Daily
News : 10 July 2010).

‘Self deception and
waiting for unidentified enemy’ - Shanie
writing under above title in THE ISLAND of 3 July, leaving apart the
literary jargon quoted out of context, says: ‘Now that the LTTE is
vanquished, new enemies have to be created to find a fear substitute’,
quoting as an example where ‘the Defence Secretary wants the former Army
Commander hanged, if he gives evidence against the government.’ The
Defence Secretary was only responding to BBC HARD TALK presenter’s
revelation that former Army Commander Gen. Sarath Fonseka (SF) is ready to
testify before a war crime probe implicating top military officials as
revealed in a clandestine telephone conversation that he (news presenter)
had with SF. In the first place, it was improper on the part of SF to have
engaged in a clandestine talk with a foreign media like BBC that is biased
against our country. Secondly, it is not known as to what other vital
information he may have passed to the news presenter. On an earlier
occasion, SF had reportedly passed out details of the place he was kept
detained (Island
: 10 July 2010).

Minister
Wimal Weerawansa is engaged in a fast unto death opposite the UN office in
Colombo.

A doctor
examines Minister Wimal Weerawansa, who is engaged in a fast unto
death opposite the UN office in Colombo, demanding that the expert
advisory panel appointed by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, to
investigate alleged war crimes during the last stages of the war
against the LTTE, be disbanded. (Photo-Nihal Chandrakumara (Island
: 9 July 2010).

Ban Ki-Moon is dragging
UN down to his level-Part II - by H. L. D.
Mahindapala - Tensions between Ban Ki-Moon, the UN Secretary General (UNSG)
and Sri Lanka are rising. Consequently, the gulf between the two is also
widening. Ban, in particular, is hardening his stand hoping to impose his
will on Sri Lanka. Publicly he claims that the UN has the expertise to
handle conflict situations but his actions reveal that he is as
incompetent as some of his predecessors in handling simple issues that
confront the UN. Take the current situation in Colombo. Reacting to public
protests at the UN office in Colombo Ban declared that he has decided to
(1) recall the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Mr. Neil Buhne, to New
York for consultations and (2) close the UNDP Regional Centre in Colombo.
Then, climbing the pedestal of a morally righteous preacher, he added: “The
Secretary-General calls upon the Government of Sri Lanka to live up to its
responsibilities towards the United Nations as host country, so as to
ensure continuation of the vital work of the Organization to assist the
people of Sri Lanka without any further hindrance.” After creating the
problem in the first place of appointing a three-man panel against the
will of the Sri Lankan people and the government, he now claims that his
intention is “to assist the people of Sri Lanka.” Leaving aside the
public protests against the UN in Colombo, the general public opinion in
Sri Lanka is decisively against interference in the domestic affairs by
any foreign agents. This was public knowledge and if Ban was a competent
peace-maker, genuinely trying to cool down feelings instead of inflaming
them, he should have known not to provoke and exacerbate the political
environment of a sensitive nation trying to recover from a 33-year-old war
– a war perpetuated mainly by foreign funding, foreign interference and
bogus theories promoted by I/NGOs and foreign offices (LankaWeb
: 9 July 2010).

Tamil link to Perth
credit card skimming - Sri Lankan Tamils were
largely behind credit card skimming crimes that had cost about 6000 West
Australians more than $6.5 million from EFTPOS machines, Assistant
Commissioner Nick Anticich said yesterday. And there are concerns that
funds raised in such operations could be diverted to the Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Eelam, commonly known as the Tamil Tigers and listed by a number
of countries as a terrorist organisation. Speaking at the Australian
Association of Crown Prosecutors conference, Mr Anticich identified
skimming crimes involving EFTPOS and automatic teller machines and
identity theft as emerging crimes committed by organised crime outfits.
Since December, WA Police have launched two major investigations into
EFTPOS skimming involving two syndicates in Perth. Seven people have been
charged and are before the courts, with one of the accused wanted in
Canada over similar charges . "This form of skimming is predominantly
perpetrated globally by persons of Tamil ethnic origin," Mr Anticich
said yesterday. "Of the 20 persons arrested for offences regarding
this crime type in Australia, 19 are confirmed to be of Tamil
origin." In Canada and Britain, members of the Sri Lankan community
were compelled to participate in credit card skimming operations under
threats of violence to family members who remained in the war-torn nation.
In those cases, funds gathered by the skimmers were diverted to the LTTE.
There is no evidence to suggest that money obtained in credit card
skimming operations in Australia has been diverted back to the LTTE or
that those charged in the WA investigations are linked to the LTTE .
Australia does not list the LTTE as a terrorist organisation. The LTTE
waged a bloody civil war against the Sri Lankan army but was crushed in
May last year. Both sides were accused of atrocities during the
long-running conflict. Despite the military defeat, security experts
believe that the LTTE continue to raise funds across the world and may one
day re-ignite its push for an independent Tamil state in Sri Lanka. Mr
Anticich told delegates that skimming operations involving ATMs were
predominantly committed by persons of Bulgarian and Romanian ethnicity.
Such cases have been isolated in WA. He added that WA Police was leading
the formation of a joint agency identity crime strike team that would
involve the Australian Federal Police, Customs and Border Protection and
the Immigration Department (The
West Com : 9 July 2010).

UN contradicts UN again -
Just hours after the UN office in Colombo said that the closing down of
the UNDP Regional Center in Sri Lanka was not linked to the protests
outside the UN in Colombo, UN Associate spokesman Farhan Haq told
reporters in New York a short while ago that both were linked. He said
that a decision was earlier taken to scale down the activities of the UNDP
Regional Center in Sri Lanka but following the protests in Colombo the UN
Secretary General Ban ki-moon had decided to completely shut down the UNDP
Regional Center. “The decision to close down the UNDP Regional Center in
Colombo was taken as a direct response to the situation affecting our main
UN compound (in Colombo). Prior to this a discussion was held with the
Foreign Minister to downsize the operations. However in light of the
announcement by the Secretary General we are now closing that Center
outright,” Haq told reporters a short while ago. Earlier in the day an
official at the UN office in Colombo told Daily Mirror online that
preparations were underway for several months now to close down the UNDP
Regional Center in Sri Lanka and it was not linked to the protest. “To
my knowledge it (closing the UNDP Regional Center) has nothing to do with
this current issue because it has been on the cards for several months. It
is not a new move. This UNDP Regional Center was located earlier in
Kathmandu but because of the worsening security situation there during
that time, the decision was taken to shift the Center to Colombo somewhere
in 2006 or 2007. However within the last year a decision was taken, taking
into consideration some administrative and financial concerns to downsize
the regional center and to shift the main functions to the Bangkok office.
This is not a new move as it has been on the card for several months,” a
UN Colombo official explained. (Daily
Mirror online : 9 July 2010).

The UN-Neocolonial
partnership - by Shenali Waduge - Replacing
colonialism today is neo-colonialism & its offspring economic
liberalism. Facilitating modern forms of “interventions” upon
sovereign nations is the United Nations whose laws, protocols, conventions
etc have been designed to legalize & necessitate these actions. To
execute these pogroms are terminologies like “responsibility to protect”
‘human rights”, “press freedom” & even “terrorism” which
all eventually leads to approval for foreign presence & eventually
enable these states to have their country “looted” of its natural
resources. Further strangulating these nations are internationally “approved”
institutes like the World Bank, IMF with their “structural adjustment
programs” wherein countries are made to compromise & open up their
markets wherein western nations suck out countries of its riches. Ideally,
suited are puppet Governments to advance western interests but in
countries where leaders have shown astuteness or signs of bravado to stand
against western dictates, their weak areas are targeted & this is
where Sri Lankan citizenry must be alert to ensure that the country’s
leaders to do stray nor allow the country to be compromised. All facets of
neo-colonial activity is what prevails in modern trade, international laws
& diplomacies (LankaWeb
: 9 July 2010).

Ranil urged US Govt to
pressurise Sri Lanka - Prof Peiris - External
Affairs Minister Prof GL Peiris told Parliament yesterday that Opposition
Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe has requested the United States to pressurise
the Sri Lankan Government to publish an 'Incident Report' on alleged human
rights violations and that war crimes took place during the last phase of
the humanitarian operations to rescue people from the LTTE. Making a
speech during his Ministry's vote during the committee stage of budget
2010, the Minister said this request by the Opposition Leader had been
published in the US State Department publication titled Sri Lanka:
Re-charting US strategy after the war prepared by the Committee on Foreign
Relations of the US. The committee working on after the war situation has
recorded their observations in this report. He quoted the following
paragraphs from the report: "Many Sri Lankan Government officials
seemed surprised by the barrage of international criticism and intense
public scrutiny they received following the war. They had expected
instead, praise for defeating a notorious terrorist group which pioneered
suicide bombing techniques and assassinated Indian Prime Minister Rajiv
Gandhi in 1991 and Sri Lankan President Ranasinghe Premadasa in 1993 and
space to make to a post conflict environment. The Opposition Leader
takes a different view. United National Party and Opposition Leader Ranil
Wickremesinghe said the United States was on the right track in publishing
the "Incident Report" and should "keep pressure on the
Government." (Daily
News : 9 July 2010).

Mr Ban Ki Moon wants to
be the King of the world – Abuse of power in UN -
by Ben Silva - Attention of Mr Ban Ki Moon Secretary General UN; Mr Ban Ki
Moon wants to be the King of the world - Abuse of power in UN - The former
South Korean foreign minister has got power into his thick head. He
appears to be manipulated by Tamil women in UN. He now want to extend his
weapon (no pun) and power to satisfy the Tamil women in UN manipulating
him. He appears to use UN as a weapon against Sri Lanka, although UN
member nations have voted in favour of Lanka, on a human rights issue.
Some say, UN is a corrupt, worthless organization [1], that does not work.
Mr Moon wants to be above the sovereignty, people, and the President of
Sri Lanka and wants to take charge of the and law and order situation in
Sri Lanka. He believes that he is a better judge of the situation in Sri
Lanka than the people of Sri Lanka or the Present who was elected with an
overwhelming majority. This is indeed a deadly threat to world peace and
should not be allowed to happen. Already, Mr Moon’s stupid decisions are
causing violence and instability in Sri Lanka. As this idiot cannot think
for himself, he wants a puppet panel to advice him. He has completely
ignored the far more violators of HR, such as the killing of over one
million people in Iraq due to an illegal war to rob Iraqi Oil assets by a
few Western countries, the same countries that hound Sri Lanka now. Sri
Lankans are glad GOSL did not give in to bulling by Mr Moon who appears to
be a puppet of Western and Tamil imperialism, manipulated y Tamils in UN (LankaWeb
: 9 July 2010).

KANGAROO COURT OF DR BAN
KI MOON- EPISODE NO.2 (Appeal to Mr Marzuki
Darusmaan to respect Indonesians and resign) - By Dr M D P DISSANAYAKE -
As reported by the writer in an earlier article to Lanka Web, the United
Nations charter has authority to expel a member nation, but it has no
provision for a member nation to voluntarily withdraw from its membership.
Despite its governing rules, in 1965, courageous first President Sukarno
of Indonesia withdrew its membership from the UN, protesting Malaysia’s
membership in the UN, and thus became the first country to leave UN even
for a brief period. UN learnt its first lesson from an Asian leader. After
45 years, an imminent Indonesian son Mr Marzuki Darusmaan has accepted the
offer of Mr Ban Ki Moon to head the Chairmanship of the Panel to
investigate any war crimes against Sri Lanka.. After several months of
hard labour, Mr Ban Ki Moon (BKM) has delivered his ill-fated baby, by
appointing panel headed by Mr Marzuki Darusmaan of Indonesian Golkar
Party. The international condemnation against this panel was spontaneous
and now gathering further momentum in large scale at home in Sri Lanka and
overseas. During the period of war against Terrorism in Sri Lanka,
Indonesia was one of the countries constantly supported the government of
Sri Lanka. Two Hundred and twenty millions in Indonesia are great fans of
Sri Lanka. In fact with my experience in Indonesia for nearly 20 years,
Indonesians can be regarded as the world’s best bunch of people. They
may be poor, but would not steal wealth of others. They may not be
Buddhists, but would not tell lies. They may be poor, but will not kneel
down to American power houses to get their Nasi Goreng ( fried rice). They
may be poor but will not hesitate to fight, demonstrate in front of US
embassy, UK embassy or UN head offices
(LankaWeb : 9 July 2010).

Sri Lanka says UN chief
'acted in haste' with envoy recall - Sri Lanka
said Friday that UN chief Ban Ki-moon had "acted in haste" by
recalling his top envoy on the island in response to angry protests over a
UN war crimes panel. Foreign Minister Gamini Lakshman Peiris said the
government had told Ban's chief representative Neil Buhne that the days of
protests outside the main UN office in Colombo would end on Friday.
"Given that background, the UN secretary-general acted in haste by
asking Mr Buhne to come to New York," Peiris told parliament, adding
that his government "regretted" the move. However, the sit-down
protest outside the main UN compound dragged into the night on Friday with
no sign of ending. The UN's main office in Colombo has been virtually
under siege since Tuesday from demonstrators demanding that Ban halt a UN
probe into alleged rights abuses during the final stages of Sri Lanka's
civil war (Yahoo
News : 9 July 2010).

Peaceful protests are
legal; we seek to end crisis - GL - While
asserting that the government was seeking an early end to the crisis
resulting from the protest outside the UN office in Colombo, External
Affairs Minister G.L. Peiris said yesterday that the government had no
authority to clamp down on a peaceful demonstration. He said it was lawful
to have peaceful protests and demonstrations. “We will not curtail such
fundamental rights. We cannot use force to disperse a lawful
demonstration,” he said, adding that it was a right recognized by the UN
as well. However, Prof Peiris said, it was the duty of the government to
protect the sanctity and dignity of diplomatic precincts. As a result, he
said, the security of the premises of the UN office had been strengthened
now. He said that he had contacted the UN Headquarters in New York and
assured them of the safety of the office in Colombo and its employees.
Earlier, Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe said the country would
face dire consequences as a result of this incident -- which involved a
Cabinet Minister. “When the LTTE was defeated last year, I was in
Europe. I was given special protection at that time. Those countries
ensured adequate security to our diplomatic missions there,” he said.
Mr. Wickremesinghe said, “A Cabinet Minister is involved in this case.
The Cabinet should take collective responsibility. Sri Lankans may have
problems in obtaining visas to visit these countries in the future.” (Daily
Mirror ; 9 July 2010).

An
Independent Afro-Asian UNO to replace the Western dictated UNO?

Sri Lanka
minister begins 'fast' outside UN office - A Sri
Lankan minister says he has begun a hunger strike outside the UN's Colombo
offices demanding that it stop its probe into alleged war crimes. Housing
Minister Wimal Weerawansa's announcement follows two days of
demonstrations outside the office by protesters angry over the inquiry.
The government denies its troops committed war crimes. But some foreign
governments and international organisations say there is evidence to the
contrary (BBC
: 8 July 2010).

I'll be the
first to be in trouble if false evidence is given - Gen. Fonseka -
MP Gen. Sarath Fonseka, the former Army chief, says he, and not ''those
jokers making a false front against Ban ki-Moon'', will be the first to
fall into trouble if false evidence is given in support of allegations
that war crimes had been committed in Sri Lanka. Speaking to the media at
the Parliamentary Complex today (July 08), he made references to the
fast-unto-death launched by NFF leader and cabinet minister Wimal
Weerawansa against the UN-appointed panel on the island. Gen. Fonseka
reiterated that he, as the commander who had led the forces in the fight
against the LTTE, would be fully accountable to everything that had taken
place during the war. No war crimes had been committed and the battle was
conducted in accordance with international norms, he said, adding that
''jokers were trying to give the impression that such things had actually
taken place.'' (Colombo
Today : 8 July 2010).

Sri Lankan
Minister On Hunger-strike Demanding End To UN Probe -
A Sri Lankan Cabinet Minister, bitterly critical of the United Nations,
went on an indefinite hunger-strike on Thursday outside the U.N. offices
in the capital Colombo to protest an inquiry into alleged war crimes.
Construction & Housing Minister Wimal Weerawansa joins other
protesters who have been holding demonstrations for the past two days
there urging the U.N. to drop the probe. Weerawansa, who is also leader of
the ruling National Freedom Front party, was opposed to a three-member
panel appointed by the U.N. to investigate the alleged killings of
civilians by troops during the 25-year-long civil war that it fought
against separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam (LTTE). He has
threatened to "fast till death" unless the accusations of war
crimes are withdrawn and the U.N. panel abolished (RTT
News : 8 July 2010).

Mr. Solheim,
you cannot hide behind your cunning foxy smile -
By Malin Abeyatunge, Melbourne, Australia - On March 12, 2000, I wrote a
small letter to Sunday Observer titled, “SCREEN PEACE TALK FACILITATORS”
which may be the first letter by an ordinary citizen against Norway peace
facilitator now known as infamous Eric Solheim. I reproduce herein this
letter. “How soon we forget our enemies? A few years back Norway and the
other Scandinavian countries became “Safe Haven’ for the LTTE
sympathizers.. They smuggled themselves into those countries, obtained
refugee status and started their terror campaign in those countries
including Norway promoting the Eelam Cry and tarnishing the good image of
Sri Lanka. Thet hen governments took no actions of these terrorist
supporters and instead morally supported their campaign including NGOs
some of which were operating in Sri Lanka under the disguise of so called
humanitarian projects. Therefore, we should not accept any facilitator
prima facie without investigating their credentials. This should also
apply to the Norwegian representative who is now in Sri Lanka to
facilitate peace talks (I purposely did not name the person). His
credentials and any hidden agenda need to be investigated first before
allowing him to approach the LTTE for any kind of facilitating. The best
that the Norwegian representative can do is to persuade the Norwegians
government to help the Sri Lanka government to wipe out the cancerous LTTE
terrorism Completely”. Well the person behind this is infamous Eric
Solheim and what happened after that with his dealings with the LTTE are
very well known to the Sri Lankan public. That’s why we treat him as an
enemy on par with the dead LTTE leader Prabhakraran. He has now the
audacity to come clean with the Sri Lankans on the interview given to the
Sunday Times. It was reported quote “ Former peace facilitator and
International Development Minister Erik Solheim told the Sunday Times in
an interview, “We called upon the LTTE to come to an organized stop (or
surrender). If it had happened, thousands of lives would have been saved.
The war would have ended under the supervision of the UN, the United
States, India or someone else. However, the LTTE rejected that call.”
War against LTTE could have ended in year 2000 with a right leadership if
not for Solheim and the gang who initiated Peace Talks, granted CFA in
order to give currency to LTTE terrorism and their cry for Eelam (Sri
Lanka News Online : 8 July 2010).

No war
crimes committed in Sri Lanka - SF - Former
Army Commander and DNA Leader General Sarath Fonseka yesterday vehemently
denied the allegations that war crimes had been committed during the last
stages of the military operations in the Vanni. He said that had war
crimes been committed in Sri Lanka, he would have been the first person to
get into trouble. He was answering queries by journalists about government’s
allegations that he (Fonseka) was planning to give evidence before a UN
experts panel set up to investigate war crimes in Sri Lanka. "I
have consistently maintained that the war was conducted according to
internationally accepted norms. No war crimes were committed," he
told a press conference at the Parliamentary complex. He said that
there were jokers who had spoken yesterday as if they had conducted the
war. "I take the full responsibility for all what happened
during the war," the former Army Commander said
(Island : 8 July 2010).

Without visas Ban Ki-Moon
is heading nowhere - Part 1 - by H. L. D.
Mahindapala - The UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, and Sri Lanka have
locked horns and are fighting it out in the diplomatic, international and
national arenas. Right now Sri Lanka has a sizeable battle on its hands in
the international arena. Though it has formidable friends in Russian,
China, Iran and the majority of the Non-Aligned Movement (India,
curiously, has not committed itself openly like Russia or China) Europe
and USA are playing an unfriendly role that is pushing Sri Lanka further
away from the West to the East. If Sri Lanka is swinging away from the
West then EU and US must be held responsible for failing to adopt flexible
policies that can be mutually beneficial for both parties. Motivated by
political considerations EU and US are stubbornly refusing to accept the
new ground realities. Analysts and political leaders (Julia Gillard the
new PM of Australia is one of them) agree that conditions in the post-war
Sri Lanka are improving by the day. This is also confirmed by the UN High
Commission for Refugees which states in its latest report (July 5, 2009),
titled ‘Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the International
Protection Needs of Asylum-Seekers from Sri Lanka’, that the human
rights and security situation in Sri Lanka has improved (LankaWeb
: 8 July 2010).

TNA meet Indian FM -
Indian Foreign Minister S M Krishna met the parliamentary delegation from
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in New Delhi today. Seeking India's help in
the post-war ethnic conflict that has emerged in Sri Lanka, the delegates
raised a spectrum of issues in the half-hour long interaction with
Krishna. The head of the delegation, veteran Sri Lankan lawmaker,
Rajavarothiam Sampanthan, discussed the critical issue of the resettlement
process of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the island nation,
and appealed to Krishna to support the Tamils' cause, said officials.
Reportedly, Krishna and the delegates also talked about the various
dimensions and causes of the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka, and explored
plausible political solutions to resolve the refugee crisis simmering in
the island nation. The six-member delegation is on a two-day visit to
India, and comprises senior lawmakers from Sri Lanka. The delegation has
previously interacted with the Home Minister, P Chidambaram and Communist
leader D. Raja. Raja urged the Indian government to pressurize the Sri
Lankan regime to take appropriate steps to rehabilitate the Tamils (Daily
Mirror : 8 July 2010).

NFF
supporters to launch hunger strike today To teach Ban Ki-moon a lesson -
National Freedom Front leader and Minister Wimal Weerawansa yesterday said
that his party and supporters would launch a fast unto death from today to
force United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to withdraw an expert
panel he had nominated to investigate Sri Lanka’s alleged war crimes
during the last stages of the war against LTTE terrorism. Addressing the
media at the party’s Battaramulla head office, Weerawansa was highly
critical of DIG K. K. Pathirana, who, he alleged, had led the brutal
attack on his party supporters demonstrating opposite the UN office on
Tuesday. Claiming that the Satyagraha launched by his party was for a
worthy cause, the NFF leader said he would not care even if the President
were to remove him from the ministerial portfolio for launching the
campaign. Minister Weerawansa said: "The Secretary General of
the UN has no right to interfere in the internal affairs of a country. He
should get the approval of either the UN Security Council or the Human
Rights Council before appointing such an advisory panel." Weerawansa
charged that the appointment of the advisory panel was an indication of UN’s
support to the LTTE. Unable to bear the defeat of the LTTE, the UN had no
alternative but to launch a witch hunt against Sri Lanka, he said
requesting all political parties to join him. He added that even if UNP
leader Ranil Wickremesinghe were to join the protest, he would be most
welcome. Weerawansa assured that the employees of the UN could return to
work. He requested the UN Secretary General to think rationally and ask
himself whether what he had done was reasonable and democratic. The fast
unto death campaign his party would launch from today was aimed at
teaching the UN Secretary General a bitter lesson, Minister Weerawansa
said (Island
: 8 July 2010).

ABC, Australia’s
commentator friends - by Ranjith Soysa - ABC
Australia, in its Asia Pacific program presented by Sally Sara on 6th July
says that Tamils are not safe in the Northern part of Sri Lanka advising
the Australian policy makers and the listeners that Tamil asylum seekers
should not be returned to Sri Lanka for this reason. Sally S who directs
many programs on Sri Lankan issues always presents a very bleak picture of
the Island painting the Government and all anti -LTTE forces in dark black
while giving the impression the LTTE and the separatist groups champion
the human rights and democratic ideals. Sally will be the happiest
journalist in the world if, Sri Lanka decides to divide the country and
handover one part to the separatists as per her understanding of Sri
Lanka. Even though her intellectual capacity as a presenter of a
prestigious program in the developed world is being questioned by many
listeners, she continues to “entertain” ABC listeners by failing to
grasp the realities of the Sri Lankan nation. In the program under
discussion her commentators from Sri Lanka were Ms Jehan Perera,
Pakkiyasothi Saravanmuttu, Mano Ganeshan and Tiran Alles! Sally’s
objectives and her prostitution of the task at hand is made obvious by her
choice. Even a kindergarten student of politics in Sri Lanka knows that
first three of the commentators were supporting the separatists and are
very soft on the LTTE and the last commentator has a political grievance
against the present administration. So they said Tamils are not safe in
the North as their sole intention is to denigrate Sri Lankan Nation State
using the international media. No sensible person would have expected a
fair comment from Sally’s friends. But, Sally chooses to carry on
regardless (LankaWeb
: 8 July 2010).

NFF UN
office siege: Govt says it has to respect the right to protest Ensures
safety of UN workers - The government
yesterday, commenting on Tuesday’s NFF demonstration outside the United
Nations Office in Colombo, said that it understood that the demonstrators
intended to continue with their protest until the UN disbanded the UNSG’s
advisory panel on Sri Lanka. It said the UN workers would be able to move
in and out of their Colombo office. A statement issued by the government
said: "The Government of Sri Lanka dealt with the protest outside the
UN complex in Colombo in compliance with both domestic as well as
international obligations. At the domestic level, Sri Lanka being a
democratic society, the Government had to respect the entitlement to voice
opinion, including through peaceful demonstrations. Accordingly, the
Police permitted a peaceful gathering in front of the complex. "The
Government was also absolutely mindful of its international obligations
and so the Police authorities deployed adequate strength and remained
vigilant, to ensure the safety of the UN complex and of the personnel
within it. At the end of the working day, the Police authorities provided
reassurance to those within, that they could freely leave their work
place. Once the bulk of the staff had left, a few senior personnel
remained within the complex (Island
: 8 July 2010).

Head-butts and own goals
- Minister Wimal Weerawansa is one of the few
politicians who had the courage to campaign against terrorism. One may
have reservations about Wimal's politics and his bull-in-a-china-shop
approach to sensitive issues but there is no reason to question his
patriotic credentials. Sadly, he blundered on Tuesday by carrying out his
much advertised threat to lay siege to the UN office in Colombo. We
pointed out in these columns the other day that he had not yet been fully
weaned from the JVP tactics that involved more brawn than brain. Thanks to
their rashness, impetuosity and aggression, anything that the pugnacious
Marxist hotspurs of his ilk touch turns into an unholy mess. Wimal and his
National Freedom Front (NFF) activists must be condemned unreservedly for
their abortive bid to hold the UN staff incommunicado. The police, for
once, got their act together and used sufficient force to help the UN
staffers leave their besieged office. That the protesters, in spite of
their anti-UN frenzy, did not try to harm them was a matter for happiness.
It was a faux pas on the part of the government to order the police to
withdraw prematurely to satisfy Wimal's caprice. Theatricals of Wimal and
his NFF may have gone down well with the lowest common denominator but the
damage they inflicted on the country's image was enormous. Sri Lanka's
enemies wanted Wimal to carry out his threat to take on the UN and he did
not disappoint them! (Island
; 8 July 2010).

The truth as seen by
UNHCR - At a time when UN Secretary General Ban-ki-Moon
is planning to haul Sri Lanka over the coals for alleged human rights
violation it comes as paradox that a UN agency under him has given the
country a ringing endorsement on its peace building efforts and efforts to
improve human rights. The UNHCR releasing its latest report on July
5 titled 'Eligibility guidelines for Assessing the International
Protection needs of Asylum Seekers from Sri Lanka' states that the human
rights and security situation in Sri Lanka has improved," and goes on
to mention the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission' set by the
President to heal the wounds of the past. This contradiction was
highlighted in the report of the UN Refugee Agency as an item to show that
Northern Tamils can no longer qualify for refugee status with the
country's rapid return to peace. That asylum seekers from Sri Lanka
have dropped from 4,573 in the first half of 2009 by almost half that
figure to 2,947 during the same period in 2010. It amply supports the
contention of the UNHCR (Daily
News ; 8 July 2010).

Non-Aligned Movement
backs Sri Lanka against U.N. chief+ - Sri Lanka
has won a major diplomatic victory at the United Nations with the
118-member Non-Aligned Movement reprimanding Secretary General Bank Ki
Moon over his proposal to set up an advisory expert panel on
"accountability issues" in Sri Lanka following the defeat of
Tamil rebels last May after a 26-year war. Describing Ban's moves as
"manipulative," senior Minister Gamini Lakshman Peiris told
Kyodo News that Ban, at the behest of a "very small group," had
deliberately avoided placing the matter before the Security Council where
many protest voices would have been raised and a veto was not unlikely.
"There has been a cynical rejection of values enshrined in the U.N.
Charter in trying to set up this panel on an internal matter that is
already engaging the attention of the Sri Lanka government," Peiris
said. Diplomats in Colombo described the NAM letter signed by its chair
Maged Abdelaziz of Egypt as an "unusual rebuke" to which there
has yet been no response although a U.N. spokesman has gone on record
saying a letter of reply was possible. Sri Lanka took strong objection to
the proposal to establish a panel of experts following its victory over
the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. The last phase of the war in May
2009 was particularly bloody, taking a heavy toll of civilians as well as
soldiers and LTTE fighters (Bretbart).

Time
to rethink and unite. Rally around to defend Sri Lanka from international
forces.

An Independent Afro-Asian
UNO to replace the Western dictated UNO? - by
Dr. Sudath Gunasekara President Senior Citizens Movement Mahanuwara -
September last year I wrote on the need for an independent Afro-Asian UNO
in view of the anti Asian and anti African attitude of the UNO under its
present dominance by the western powers. Now with the final appointment of
a Committee by its Secretary General under the pressure from these powers
isn’t it clear that the need for such organization has become more
crucial. I reiterate the urgent need for such a new world organization to
protect Asian and African countries from western harassing and also to
address the needs of the Afro-Asian countries. I reproduce what I wrote
last year below. I would like to add only one comment regarding the role
of Japan and South Korea to this article. These two countries which are
pro-American at present I think should now adopt a pro-Asian attitude to
common regional problems. My sympathies with Ban Moon the present
Secretary General though represents an Asian country is struggling to gain
a second term by representing the western interests. Today he acts only a
puppet in the hands of his religious convictions, personal greed for the
second term. It is a tragedy that he does not realize that thereby he is
going against one of his Asian Nation State. His religious conviction, the
influence of his church and personal greed for the second term and perhaps
the benefits he may be getting from the Tamil Diaspora may have made him
to forget the Sri Lankan government’s support he got last time to gain
this position. Had the Sri Lankan Government supported Jayantha Danpala
things would have been different (LankaWeb
; 7 July 2010).

Sri Lanka & UN panel
to probe war crimes - by Asoka Weerasinghe,
Canada - The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN; Sir: “Sri Lanka:
Protestors rally over war crimes panel”, you said. This was the panel
that UN’s Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon went ahead and appointed despite
the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva rejected such a proposal by 29 to 12
country votes on June 2009, not to interfere in Sri Lanka’s internal
affairs. Ban ki-Moon has clearly exceeded his powers prescribed in Chapter
XV of the UN Charter where his role as the Chief Administrative Officer
and the limits of his authority are detailed clearly in Articles 97 and
98. However, what should be noted is that there was peace and quiet in the
country after the Tamil Tiger terrorists were militarily defeated after 27
years of warring until Ban ki-Moon appointed his panel to probe into war
crimes during the latter stages of the war. Now Sri Lanka has instability,
thanks to UN Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon when his impudent act has again
permitted extremism to reoccupy centre stage in Sri Lanka distracting Sri
Lankans from their efforts to reconcile, reconstruct and reintegrate. And
that is a shame. One of Ban ki-Moon’s panellists, Steven Ratner has
written that the Tamils represented by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil
Eelam (Tamil Tigers) are an oppressed minority. This should have
disqualified him ab initio. The leader of the panel who was part of an
international team appointed to observe proceedings on a previous Sri
Lanka commission on atrocities and left in a huff with strong anti-Sri
Lankan feelings. He should have been disqualified for his bias too (LankaWeb
: 7 July 2010).

‘War crimes’ galore!
- Ban- Ki- moon, instead of dissipating his
energies chasing shadows of elusive evidence of non-existent ‘war crimes’
apparently based on some spurious and hearsay statement of a self
-seeking, mentally disturbed General who is blinded by hatred and
frustration and probably suffering from PTSD, imagined to have been
committed on the penultimate days of the 30-year-old conflict between some
people who took up arms against a lawfully established government, has at
hand, if he is so keen, a more productive area to investigate. Why confine
his investigation only to last days at the end of the conflict? He could
expand the canvas of investigation into a larger area covering the full 30
years of this conflict. Rather than finding any ‘war crimes’ he is
sure to find adequate material which could be termed ‘crimes against
humanity’, by his own definition. The list is long. Hence I give below
only some glaring instances that need investigation which strike my mind.
There are really many more, for it covers 30 or more years. Now that Moon
is keen on finding out whether any white flag waving terrorists were
killed, here is a more solid case to investigate. I refer to the
slaughtering of 600 hundred unarmed policemen in the Ampare/Batticaloa
districts who in 1990 had already surrendered on orders from the top after
due discussions and agreement between two fighting parties at command
level. There is well documented evidence of eye witnesses available. Then
there is the case of slaughtering of over a hundred devotees who were
praying at a mosque in Katthankudy. This is in addition to killing of some
40 odd Buddhist monks who were traveling in a bus to participate in a
religious function (Island
: 7 July 2010).

Sri Lanka & the UN
panel to probe war crimes - by Asoka
Weerasinghe, Canada - The Editor (Letters) THE OTTAWA CITIZEN, Sir:
“Demonstrators led by a Sri Lankan cabinet minister surrounded the UN
office in Colombo on Tuesday and kept staff under siege to protest against
a UN panel set up to probe war crimes…”, you said. I understand their
frustrations and anger against Ban Ki-Moon the Secretary-General of the UN
for appointing the panel, as I too am incensed by his audacity. I was
given the impression by the world leaders that we are all fighting to
eliminate terrorism after the 9/11 terrorists attack and Sri Lanka just
did that by eliminating the most ruthless terrorists the Tamil Tigers
single handed, with no help from Canada nor any other western nation, who
had haemorrhaged Sri Lanka for 27 years killing over 100,000 innocent
civilians for the want of their separate Tamil state, Eelam. Ban ki-Moon
is clearly in the wrong when the same issue was dealt appropriately in
June 2009 at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva where the members
decided in a 29 to 12 vote to not to intervene in Sri Lanka’s internal
affairs. But Ban Ki-Moon went ahead anyway appointing a panel thus
exceeding his powers prescribed in Chapter XV of the UN Charter where his
role as the Chief Administrative Officer and the limits of his authority
are detailed clearly in Articles 97 and 98 (LankaWeb
: 7 July 2010).

The President says all
should raise a single voice against the attempts on the sovereignty of the
motherland - President Mahinda Rajapaksa says
all should set aside their political differences and raise a single voice
against the foreign elements that attempt to interfere with the
sovereignty of the motherland. Foreign elements attempted to influence Sri
Lanka when the government carried out humanitarian operation against the
LTTE terrorism. At present when the government steer the country towards
development some foreign elements are still attempting to interfere with
the country’s internal affairs. Some elements in the island are also
helping these foreign elements. The President stressed that no citizen in
the country has right to betray the motherland. The President made these
observations at the inauguration of national postal museum and stamp
exhibition centre set up at the Postal Headquarters in Colombo yesterday.
The President added that the newly opened postal museum is a part of a
national heritage and it should be protected for the future generations (SLBC
: 7 July 2010).

‘HR, security situation
improved’: Northerners no longer need refugee status - UNHCR -
Given the cessation of hostilities, Sri Lankans in the North are no longer
in need of international protection under broader refugee criteria or
complementary forms of protection solely on the basis of risk of
indiscriminate harm, states UNHCR. The UN Refugee Agency releasing its
latest report on 5 July, titled ‘Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing
the International Protection Needs of Asylum-Seekers from Sri Lanka’,
further says that human rights and security situation in Sri Lanka has
improved. ‘In light of the improved human rights and security situation
in Sri Lanka, there is no longer a need for group-based protection
mechanisms or for a presumption of eligibility for Sri Lankans of Tamils
originating from the North’, UNHCR report states. The end of the armed
conflict and the significantly improved security conditions throughout the
country have resulted in a reduction in the number of Sri Lankans seeking
international protection in industrialized countries. During the period
from January to June, 2,947 asylum applications have been registered -
compared to 4,573 applications registered during the same period in 2009 -
representing a 35 percent decrease, the report further states (Daily
News : 7 July 2010).

President says:
International forces at it again - Various
international forces are obstructing the country when it is fully geared
for development after the eradication of terrorism which had ravaged the
country’s progress for more than 30 years, President Mahinda Rajapaksa
said. He said the country faced similar obstacles when it was
fighting with the one of the most ruthless terrorist outfits in the world
– the LTTE which deprived the rights of all communities. Speaking at the
opening of the first ever Postal Museum philatelic exhibition at the
Postal Department, the President said the country is facing various
international impediments even after the Government appointed a Lessons
Learnt and Reconciliation Commission. He stressed that various
elements are involved in aiding and abetting these international forces to
achieve their petty and narrow objectives. He stressed that the
people should raise a single voice when they deal with the world. “There
may be different political views among us but we should raise a single
voice when we are dealing with the world,” he stressed. “We as the
sons and daughters of this Motherland cannot indulge in such betrayal,”
he added. The President added that he will not betray the country
for petty gains and insisted that country has a well-established judicial
system to uphold democracy. He added that the judicial system in Sri
Lanka is so independent that the Government respected several Supreme
Court Judgments which appear to have surpassed even the legislative and
executive ambit (Daily
News : 7 July 2010).

Police break Wimal’s UN
siege, beat retreat - The Colombo police
yesterday used forced to disperse National Freedom Front (NFF) supporters,
who blocked the entrance to the UN mission in Colombo. Several hundred
policemen swooped down on the protesters after they had refused to allow
UN staff to leave the compound until UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
dismissed the recently constituted three-member panel to advise him on
accountability issues regarding the last phase of the war. Minister Wimal
Weerawansa who ordered the protest targeting the UN mission, was not
present when the police attacked the group. Former Cultural Affairs
Minister Piyasiri Wijenayake was among about a dozen NFF members,
including Mohamed Muzamil (former MP), Nimal Premawansa (former MP) and
Wayamba Provincial Councillor Senaratne Silva targeted by the police,
party spokesman Anurudda Bandara alleged. According to him, the police had
attacked NFF General Secretary Priyanjith Vitharana and dragged him away.
Later, Weerawansa returned to the scene where he declared that the NFF
would not withdraw until the UN disbanded what he called an illegal panel.
Weerawansa said that even if his party had to leave the UPFA government or
he lost his ministerial portfolio, he would continue with the protest
until the UN secretary General budged (Island
; 7 July 2010).

Time to rethink and unite
- by Vernon Boteju, Senior Attorney-at-Law -
..... The LTTE scourge was finally eradicated from the soil of Sri Lanka
on May 19, 2009 by the valiant Armed Forces under the dynamic leadership
of Commander in Chief President Mahinda Rajapaksa. But there is a lurking
danger not only to Sri Lanka but also to the rest of the world in the
event of the resurgence of LTTE terrorism under the ‘Tiger Flag of Tamil
Eelam’ that has now been registered as the symbol of a political party
in Tamil Nadu. Since peace and harmony is prevailing in the entire country
and a strong and stable Government under President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s
administration has been elected by the citizens, it behaves all Sri
Lankans to unite and prevent the resurgence an LTTE insurgency in Sri
Lanka. In the present context it is incomprehensible and needs to be
totally condemned that the issue of ethnic problem is being echoed by
certain opposition political parties registered under communalist labels
and symbols in Sri Lanka that are evidently acting in concert and
collusion with LTTE sympathizers and loyalists. What Sri Lanka and her
citizens truly suffered from, for over three decades was LTTE terrorism
and not due to ethnicity. It is a sad and tragic commentary to record that
the LTTE through its barbaric and ruthless terror acts had not only
murdered or forcible driven the Sinhala, Muslim and other inhabitants of
ethnic minority depriving them of their property from the North and East
but murdered and robbed both movable and immovable property of the Tamil
inhabitants and drove them also from the North and East forcing them to
seek refuge in camps or migrate to foreign countries (Daily
News : 7 July 2010).

Rally around to defend
country - It is high time to understand the real
situation facing Sri Lanka and help the motherland in every possible way
to regain the lost prosperity. When threats are being made by external
forces to sovereignty of the country, it is the duty of all sections to
defend it, Sri Lankan Expatriates Forum President Senaka Rajapakse told
the Daily News yesterday. He said it was unfair to penalize Sri Lanka that
suffered immensely during the past three decades due to the war. The
President Mahinda Rajapaksa's leadership was successful in defeating the
LTTE terrorist outfit to the bewilderment of the international community.
The humanitarian operation conducted by valiant forces to rescue around
300,000 Tamil civilians from the clutches of the LTTE should be commended.
Children who were dragged away from schools and given arms training and
used as child soldiers by the LTTE were rehabilitated and sent back to
their homes and schools by the Government. Parties like the UN Secretary
General and EU should appreciate rehabilitation and reconciliation
measures implemented by the Government, he observed. Expatriate Forum
members working in Western Countries would lobby support for the country
against moves by certain elements within the UN Organization and the Forum
members are getting in touch with friends of Sri Lanka in those countries
to garner their support for the Government and the people of Sri Lanka, he
said (Daily News :
7 July 2010).

Fonseka strongly defends
military - Democratic National Alliance (DNA)
leader retired General Sarath Fonseka who led the military in eliminating
the LTTE said yesterday the war was carried out in line with international
conventions and covenants. General Fonseka in a hard hitting
statement told parliament that as the then Army Commander he was prepared
to uphold the reputation of the military. He said he was not afraid
of any experts’ panel appointed by United Nations Secretary General Ban
Ki-Moon to advise him on allegations of human rights violations during the
war. “As the then army commander I can candidly say the war was
waged in line with international covenants and conventions. I fully
support the military in this case,” General Fonseka said. He said
Sri Lanka should not be afraid to face any such panel (Daily
Mirror : 6 July 2010).

Jayasinghe, UN in talks -
Foreign Secretary Romesh Jayasinghe arrived outside the UN office in
Colombo a short while ago and was seen being escorted by two
representatives of the National Freedom Front (NFF) inside the UN building
to hold discussions with the UN. Before enterring the UN office,
Jayasinghe was seen having discussions with Minister Wimal Weerawansa
amidst the large number of protestors who remained in the area staging a
‘sathyagraha’. The NFF representatives later came out of the UN office
saying they had agreed with UN officials to ensure the safety of the
remaining UN staff leaving the premises (Daily
Mirror : 6 July 2010).

UN temporarily closed -
The UN office in Colombo has been temporarily closed and the UN staff has
been advised to work from home tomorrow as a result of the tense situation
which developed outside the UN office today, UN sources told Daily Mirror
online. UN sources said that instructions to work from home was
issued to the UN staff today after the group of protestors led by Minister
Wimal Weerawansa who gathered outside the UN office laid siege to the
building and prevented the UN staff from leaving the premises.
However there was no indication for how long the UN staff would stay away
from their office although it is expected that a decision would be taken
following a review of the latest developments. Meanwhile when
contacted, officials at the UN Headquarters in New York said that New York
was closely monitoring the situation in Colombo and would take the matter
up with the Sri Lankan government. “We are fully aware of what is
happening in Colombo and are closely monitoring the situation. We will
raise the matter with the necessary people,” the official said refusing
to comment further. Meanwhile UN Associate spokesman Farhan Haq,
speaking to reporters in New York a short while ago said that the UN had
registered its strong objections with the Sri Lankan government over the
protest organised by Minister Wimal Weerawansa outside the UN office which
prevented UN staff from entering and leaving the premises. He also
said that the UN Resident Coordinator in Colombo Neil Buhne had met Prime
Minister D.M Jayaratna yesterday and obtained an assurence over the
security of the UN staff in Colombo as a result of the threat made by
Weerawansa last week urging the public to lay siege to the UN office. (Daily
Mirror online : 6 July 2010).

Protest at UN to continue
- The government says it understands that those
who are demonstrating outside the UN office in Colombo intend to continue
with their protest until the UN system revisits the matter of the Panel on
Sri Lanka. A statement by the government information department said the
government hopes that the UN complex in Colombo would continue to function
as normal in the days ahead. It also said that while the protest continues
the freedom of entry and exit to and from the complex for authorized
personnel will remain constant. “The Government of Sri Lanka dealt with
the protest outside the UN complex in Colombo today, in compliance with
both domestic as well as international obligations. At the domestic level,
Sri Lanka being a democratic society, the Government had to respect the
entitlement to voice opinion, including through peaceful demonstrations.
Accordingly, the Police permitted a peaceful gathering in front of the
complex. The Government was also absolutely mindful of its international
obligations and so the Police authorities deployed adequate strength and
remained vigilant, to ensure the safety of the UN complex and of the
personnel within it. At the end of the working day, the Police authorities
provided reassurance to those within, that they could freely leave their
work place. Once the bulk of the staff had left, a few senior personnel
remained within the complex. Those demonstrating had expressed the wish
that they should be able to speak to a person in authority in the UN
office, in order to convey their deeply felt reservations against the
appointment of a Panel on Sri Lanka. The Secretary of the Ministry of
External Affairs was accordingly instructed to proceed to the UN complex,
so that a very limited number of demonstrators could meet the senior staff
and express their sentiments. Once this was accomplished, the remaining UN
staff too left the complex,” the government information department said (Daily
Mirror : 6 July 2010).

Deputy Minister
Vinayagamurthi Muralitharan says - it was the
LTTE who committed war crimes - The committee stage debate on budget
commenced today. Expenditure bills of many ministries including Finance
and Defence were taken up today in the parliament. The motion to extend
the state of emergency by one month was also debated today. Speaking at
the debate Deputy Minister M.K.D.S. Gunawardena said that people in north
and east provinces are now living without the fear of terrorism. He also
pointed out the need of appointing a group of officials to every police
station to investigate about terrorist activities. Deputy Minister
Vinayagamurthi Muralitharan who joined the debate said it was the LTTE who
committed war crimes. He pointed out that due to the humanitarian mission
carried out by the heroic forces the people in North and East provinces
can now live freely. Parliamentarian Noordeen Mashur assured that fullest
cooperation of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress will be extended to the
efforts of the government to solve the problems of the people in Wanni (SLBC
: 6 July 2010).

Conflicts and Peace
Building - By Nihal Rodrigo former Sri Lanka
Foreign Secretary - I am touched and privileged to address a few comments
on HL and to speak on Conflicts and Peace-building with particular
reference to Sri Lanka. I well recall his arrival with Manel at New York
airport in February 1995 to take up duties as Sri Lanka’s Permanent
Representative to the United Nations. There may have been some security
alert in New York on that day. Large ferocious-looking dogs were sniffing
luggage and even arriving passengers. I assured H.L. that he need not
worry because US Security authorities fed their sniffer-dogs generously.
The dogs were therefore not hungry or angry. H.L. observed, with a quiet
smile, that security costs must be very high in the US to keep such
mastiffs satisfied and quipped that eternal vigilance is the high price of
liberty! The need for vigilance in peace-building is my theme but my
address will lack the erudition, wit and perception that H.L. would have
infused into such a theme. When H.L. arrived in New York, talks with the
LTTE in Sri Lanka were in process. H.L. was wary of the process and
anyway, by April of that year, Eelam War III had broken out, almost
coinciding with the Oklahoma City bombings in the United States. In
respect of the US bombings, Prabhakaran even extended a message of
sympathy to the United States. This was described by the New York Times as
"jolting in its audacity, considering the terrorist record of those
who composed it" (Island
: 6 July 2010).

Citizens Protest Outside
UN Office (Photos) - large crowd of Sri Lankan
citizens gathered this afternoon outside the United Nations office (Bauddhaloka
Mawatha, Colombo) to protest the panel set up to advise Secretary General
Ban Ki-Moon on possible violations of human rights and humanitarian law
during the end of the war against the LTTE. Led by the National
Freedom Front and its vociferous leader Wimal Weerawansa, the citizens
protest what they see as ‘meddling’ by the United Nations, saying that
the peace and stability achieved by the President Mahinda Rajapaksa after
30 years of separatist war, should be allowed to take hold. 'We dont
want another war’, Geetha Edirisinghe with her family from Nugegoda,
told the Leader outside the UN office. ‘All this panel will do is arouse
issues that have already been dealt with by our President. This will just
lead to another war and more issues and separation between our people, we
don’t want that’. Wasantha Udayasinghe from Kollonnawa, echoed
her sentiments. He remembered how doing during the war, parents would
travel seperately on public transport in order to ensure that one of them
survives, should they come under LTTE attack, saying ‘ we want no more
of it, we want the peace our President has restored to us.’ ‘This
is only the beginning’, Sugath Kumara from Kalutara said. ‘We have not
been paid to come here, we are here of our own free will, protesting the
UN’s interference into our affairs. We have set an example to other
nations by eliminating terrorist, and by setting up this panel, what the
UN is saying, is that they don’t really believe it (Sunday
Leader : 6 July 2010).

SORRY, SRI LANKA IS NOT
FOR SALE - By Lenin Benedict-Toronto - “If
the Government of Sri Lanka plans an inflow of LTTE money and wealth to
the country with the assistance of KP, it can be done through legal means
in accordance with existing domestic and international laws by
confiscating the assets of the Terrorist organization, since LTTE is
already proscribed as a Terrorist outfit in many countries. Even if it is
not possible, we cannot sell the dignity of the country for a few million
dollars, which KP has in his possession.The impact of the loss of morale
amongst our soldiers and civilians on national security and social welfare
could have adverse effects. Thus, we would loose the morale worth billions
and billions.” World renowned LTTE mafia boss and The Interpol wanted
Kumaran Pathmanapan alias K.P getting more importance in the Northern
politics and backing of the Government very much shows the criminalization
of politics in the North. It raises the question of honor and respect to
our beloved armed forces that sacrificed themselves to destroy Terrorist
forces from Srilankan soil. Does the Government of Srilanka (GOSL)
dishonor those sacrifices made by our brave men and women, by bringing
back the same LTTE leadership into the Government? Are we Srilankans going
to accept this to happen? (Sinhale
Hot News : 6 July 2010).

Winning War Against
Terror, Human rights violations and War Crimes - An
open letter to Ban Ki Moon, Secretary General of the UN, Ms. Navi Pillay,
UN Hign Commissioner of Human Rights , Ms. Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special
representative of the UN SG for Children in Armed Conflict by Warna
Hettiarachchi, Canada. - You have appointed a panel of “International-Experts”
to investigate “War Crimes” allegations against Sri Lankan government
during the last phase of its war against terror inflicted by LTTE. This is
to justify your own convictions, as you previously lost the efforts in the
UN Security council after Russia and China vetoed against it. With the
appointment of this ad hoc committee, you are interfering with the
internal matters and affairs of a democratically-elected sovereign member
nation of the UN. Such actions cannot be carried out without first
ratifying at UN Security council and its vote. You, Pillay/Coomaraswamy
team and the Western “enemy-nations” of Sri Lanka knew it would not
survive UN Security Council vote. So you went ahead and appointed it
yourself. You are aware that the UN Member Nations have independent
governments of their own, am I correct? (Sinhale
Hot News ; 6 July 2010).

UN Secretary General’s
Panel on Sri Lanka is a Blunder of Serious Proportions - Media
Release by Mahinda Gunasekera, Honorary President – SLUNA - The UN
Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon has clearly exceeded the powers prescribed
per Chapter XV of the UN Charter where his role as the Chief
Administrative Officer and the limits of his authority are specifically
defined in Articles 97 and 98, by his appointing a three member panel to
investigate alleged violations of human rights and humanitarian law during
the concluding stages of the military action taken by Sri Lanka in 2009 to
regain the country from the designated terror group called the Liberation
Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) also known as the Tamil Tigers. The UN
Charter provides that the Secretary General shall perform such functions
as are entrusted to him by the General Assembly, the Security Council and
other subsidiary bodies such as the Human Rights Council, but lacks
authority to act in such matters on his own. In fact, Sri Lanka’s human
rights issues have been dealt with appropriately by the international
community in June 2009 at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva where the
members decided in a 29 to 12 vote to not intervene in Sri Lanka’s
internal issues (Sinhale
Hot News ; 6 July 2010).

Jaffna High Security Zone
to be relaxed - In a move to restore complete
civil administration in the Jaffna Peninsula, the Resettlement Ministry
yesterday said certain parts of the Jaffna High Security Zone (HSZ) have
been identified for resettlement. The Ministry has instructed Jaffna
Government Agent K. Ganesh to discuss resettlement in the Jaffna HSZ with
the security authorities and make preliminary arrangements to resettle the
people. According to Resettlement Ministry Secretary M.B.
Dissanayake, the Ministry has given complete freedom to the Jaffna
Government Agent to discuss with the authorities and obtain permission to
resettle people in the Jaffna HSZ. Dissanayake said resettlement
will be carried out in Thellippalai, Kopai and several other areas in the
western parts of the Jaffna HSZ provided the Defence Ministry approves it.
Army Spokesman Brigadier Ubaya Madawala told the Daily News that
discussions about resettling people in the Jaffna HSZ is going on.
“Figures are yet to be decided but plans are under way to resettle
people in certain areas in the HSZ,” he added. Meanwhile, Jaffna
Security Forces Commander Major General Hathurusinghe told the Daily News
that resettlement of people can only be done after the de-mining process
is completed. “The de-mining process in the Jaffna HSZ is
continuing. We have to ensure that the area in which these people are to
be resettled are free from mines and booby traps,” he added (Daily
News : 6 July 2010).

Program to create moral,
economic development in North, East - The
Government will soon introduce a program which aims at creating moral and
economic development among the people in the North and the East. This
program will be centred on religious places in the two provinces.
According to Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne, all religious places in the
North and the East will also be developed soon. The first phase of this
development project is expected to begin next week. Addressing the
members of the Islamic Religious Affairs Committee at the Parliamentary
complex, Prime Minister Jayaratne added that foreign assistance would also
be sought for the development of such religious places in addition to the
funds allocated by the State. The Committee drew the attention on
the need of having a stable set of rules with regard to the usage of
loudspeakers at Islamic religious centres. The Committee members discuss
the problems faced by the clergy at Islamic religious places in the two
Provinces. Prime Minister Jayaratne instructed the officials to draw
up a comprehensive plan to ensure the welfare of Muslim women who were
widowed by the conflict (Daily
News : 6 July 2010).

Number of effective
programs to fight dengue in North - The
President Task Force to eradicate dengue mosquito breeding has implemented
a number of effective programs to fight dengue in the Northern Province.
Northern Province Governor Major General G.A. Chandrasiri said the
President appointed the Task Force to eradicate dengue mosquito breeding
in the Northern Province. This Task Force has carried out their tasks
effectively. Deaths caused by dengue have decreased during the last three
months in the Northern Province. The Task Force held Special meetings with
municipal staff and Zonal level meetings with school principals, hospital
staff etc. The Northern Province Governor inaugurated a one week
Shramadana campaign, such as cleaning abandoned public & private
lands, cutting bushes, removing garbage and cleaning drains. PHIs, PHMs,
health volunteers and Youth Clubs members in the respective areas of the
Northern Province inspected households. He noted that dengue prevention
awareness programs were successful in the Northern Province. The dengue
awareness creation was conducted through public announcements,
distribution of leaflets and banners, night shows, posters and stickers
campaigns. Around 20 deaths were reported in Jaffna this year, out of
which two deaths occurred in June. Confirmed dengue cases in the Jaffna
district from January to June 2010 was 1,600. Around 536 dengue patients
were reported from the Vavuniya district. There were only two deaths
during the first two months of this year in Vavuniya. Another 193 dengue
cases were reported in the Mannar district. No deaths was reported in
Mannar in 2010 (Daily
News : 6 July 2010).

In
Oslo, Solheim
has jumped headlong in an imitation of bulls visiting a china shop.

Ban Ki-moon
and human rights - By K Godage, Former
Ambassador - I write further to my article published in your paper
today on the letter the EU has sent to the Sri Lankan government over the
GSP Plus issue. I have received a huge response by email that I decided to
revisit the subject. In that article, I said that those who had sought to
teach us how to conduct ourselves "may have come down from trees in
the not so distant past. Many of those who responded to my article have
drawn attention to the fact that we have a written history of over 2000
years, and that when our kings sat on thrones those who are pontificating
to us today lived in caves painting themselves black and blue. They, of
course, marched ahead with gun powder, conquest and plunder of other
lands. Subsequently, there occurred the Industrial Revolution, which made
them rich and powerful. Today, they are preaching to us on Human Rights!
Good God, was it not only following the Second World War, after fifty
million were killed of whom thirty million were civilians, that they
realised the value of human life and agreed to the Human Rights
Convention. That was in the culmination of many wars and massacres. Don’t
we recall the Inquisition, the Crusades, and St. Bartholomew’s Day? In
more recent times they carpet bombed Dresden. Did they say a word of
protest when the US bombed out Hiroshima and Nagasaki killing hundreds of
thousands of innocent human beings, or even later protest when the US used
Agent Orange in Vietnam? But, let us come to more recent times when they
sat and watched thousand of Muslims being murdered by the Serbs who called
themselves Catholics! Didn’t the Dutch, who were so-called peace
keepers, watch whilst Serbs butchered Muslim men women and children in
Srebrenica and let me also recall the period when a ten percent White
minority, practised the crime of apartheid and made slaves of the native
people of South Africa. What did those western governments that are now
preaching to us do then? They aided apartheid. They supported Malan and
every White regime that followed and allowed them to brutalise the native
people. Where was their sense of justice?
(Island : 5 July 2010).

No alliance
with detained LTTE leader: Sri Lanka Govt - A
top LTTE leader and a key suspect in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case,
currently in detention and presumably cooperating with the government, is
not being groomed to be a provincial chief minister, Sri Lanka's defence
secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has said. There was no "alliance"
between Selvarasah Pathmanathan, also known as KP, and the government but
the information gleaned from him was being used strategically, Rajapaksa
told the government-run Sunday Observer. KP once headed LTTE's
international network. He was made the LTTE chief by a section of Tamil
diaspora after V Prabhkaran's death in May, 2009. But in August last year,
KP was arrested in a South East Asian country and brought back to Sri
Lanka. Since then, he has been an important source of information
for the Lankan intelligence and is known to have shared details of LTTE's
international networks of arms, finance and contacts. KP is very
crucial to the Lankan government to find out details of the hundreds of
bank accounts that the LTTE maintained across the world. And even though
the government might be denying it now, it does have a history of
rewarding former LTTE leaders: one is currently a government minister and
another is the chief minister of the eastern province. Rajapaksa,
President Mahinda Rajapaksa's younger brother, said that intelligence
officers were grilling him for information and also using his contacts in
the Tamil diaspora to start a dialogue. He confirmed that KP played
an important role last month when an eight-member Tamil diaspora team from
across the world landed in Colombo to talk to the government
(Hindustan Times : 5 July 2010).

No political
plans for KP: Colombo - Sri Lanka's Defence
Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa has denied reports in a section of the media
that the government is planning to install former the LTTE leader, K.
Pathnathan (KP), who is under detention, as the Chief Minister of the
Northern Province. In an interview to the state-run English weekly, Sunday
Observer, Mr. Rajapaksa, who is the younger brother of President Mahinda
Rajapaksa, however, confirmed that the government was working with KP in a
“strategic manner” to mobilise the support of the Tamil diaspora. A
few days ago KP had organised a meeting of eight former leaders of the
LTTE, based in different parts of the world, with the Sri Lankan
authorities and pledged their support for the efforts of the government in
the re-settlement of war displaced Tamil civilians and reconstruction in
the war ravaged Northern and Eastern Provinces. KP took charge of
the LTTE after the death of Velupillai Prabakaran in May last year.
However, he was apprehended by the Sri Lankan authorities from a South
East Asian country within weeks. KP, whose name figures in the Rajiv
Gandhi assassination case, had been designated as the international chief
of the LTTE by Prabakaran and is considered to be very influential among
the Tamil Diaspora. Since the meeting of KP and other former LTTE
leaders with the government, there have been reports in a section of the
media that the Rajapaksa government had forged an “alliance” with KP
and he would be entrusted with an important political job (Hindu
: 5 July 2010).

Expert panel on Sri
Lanka: UNSG creating a precedent - Question:
What is your view about the reasons that prompted United Nations Secretary
General Ban Ki-moon to appoint a Panel of Experts to advise him on alleged
incidents said to have occurred during the final phase of the humanitarian
operations against the terrorists last year? Answer: The reason for
appointing of a panel of experts to advise the Secretary General are not
exactly clear. We know that the vast majority of the members of United
Nations did not ask for it. We are fully aware that none of the
decision-making bodies of UN, the Security Council or the General Assembly
had asked. the Secretary General to appoint such a panel of experts. In
fact when a resolution was moved in the Human Rights Council it was
defeated by substantial majority 29 to 12. In the circumstances we find it
very difficult and even mysterious how the Secretary General appointed a
panel to advise him on issues alleged to have taken place towards the end
of the conflict in Sri Lanka. The Secretary General seems to have been
influenced by certain individuals and parties that are obsessed with
exerting pressure on Sri Lanka rather than with finding out how the
conflict ended. We have to remember that terrorism was defeated after
nearly three decades of fighting and there was jubilation among the
people. It was a humanitarian operation where a very large number of
civilians were rescued. It is an internal problem of our country, a point
that seemed to have been missed by the Secretary General. In these
circumstances one begins to ask the question what his motivations are? And
it is possible that it was a move made in response to certain pressures on
him (Daily News ; 5
July 2010).

Unravelling
Solheim’s crazy conundrum Off my chest -
Since reading in a Sunday newspaper the remarks of Norwegian Minister Erik
Solheim to a group of Sri Lankan journalists in Oslo, I have been trying
to unravel the meaning and intent of his words. Before commenting on
Solheim’s observations on the panel on Sri Lanka appointed by UN
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon let me deal with another controversial issue
into which Solheim has jumped headlong in an imitation of bulls visiting a
china shop. To recapitulate, the report in the Sunday Times said that
Solheim had told visiting Sri Lankan journalists that on 17th May last
year he had received a telephone call from LTTE leaders B. Nadesan and S.
Pulithevan asking him to arrange for a surrender. He also claims that a
similar appeal had been made to the ICRC and the UN. "We passed the
information to the government," Solheim said. But then came an
interesting remark. Solheim says: "We told the two LTTE leaders that
their offer came too late." Now this is intriguing. What is not
explained is why Solheim said that it was too late. Did somebody tell him
so? If somebody did, who was it? Was it a person in authority who was in a
position to know it was too late? If nobody told him that how did Solheim
come to make this claim? On what evidence did he draw this conclusion? Or
did he simply assume so? If he assumed it on what basis did he reach this
conclusion? These are questions that remain unanswered. Strangely enough,
none of the journalists present appear to have thought it fit to raise
these questions with Solheim. Up to now there is no clear picture about
the last day or last hours in the decimation of the LTTE. There are many
grey areas that need to be cleared. Since we are made to believe that
Solheim had played a role-how important it was in the circumstances is
still not clear either- the journalists had the opportunity to ask him to
eliminate this opacity as far as he could or would (Island
: 5 July 2010).

UN
Secretary General Ban ki-Moon demands ‘a pound of flesh’. Is this a
fair trial?

UN
and West attacking Sri Lanka for liberating innocent Tamils from the
clutches of LTTE Tamil Tiger Terrorists

Kumaran Pathmanathan
alias “KP”-The Master Schemer - Malin
Abeyatunge, Melbourne, Australia - Kumaran Pathmanathan with so many
aliases and most popularly a.k.a KP in the LTTE circle is not an ordinary
person but clever (to pass thro so many countries with false passports),
skillful (building a fleet of ships for LTTE from crap), cunning as a fox
and excellent maneuver (Many western politicians, UN officials, Human
Rights Activists obliged to him for may be known reasons). He is applying
all his skills now to go a free man. He was the live wire and financial
controller for years (after the disappearance of Thilagar (Paris) in Wanni)
behind the LTTE military operations in Sri Lanka. It was KP who was
totally responsible in prolonging the war by timely supply of illegal arms
to the Tamil Tigers. If not for his scandalous operations in procurements
of arms illegally and shipping them to LTTE, narcotic trade, human
smuggling, money laundering and managing a fleet of ships, this war
against Tamil Tigers could have ended very much earlier provided that we
had the right leadership at that time like President Mahinda Rajapaksa. We
cannot forgive KP for the horrendous crimes committed by Tamil Tigers
which resulted in thousands of deaths of our soldiers and thousands of
innocent civilians which he was playing a major role. His involvement
with LTTE is much more horrendous than a LTTE suicide bomber(Sri
Lanka News Online : 4 July 2010).

The dividends of war and
peace - The first budget presented after the war
has brought no dividend to the people - UNP - The Peace Dividend is a much
talked of topic today. There are many who expect this dividend to be in
the form of reconciliation and restoration of mutual trust among the
people of Sri Lanka. There are others abroad who expect the Peace Dividend
to be the continued opportunity for those who were trying to throw a
life-line to the LTTE in the last stages of the battle against terror, to
continue their pressurising of Sri Lanka and interference in our internal
affairs. But the UNP has a different expectation of the Peace Dividend, to
judge by the comments by several of its key members on the Budget 2010
presented earlier this week. Their lament led by Tissa Attanayake and Ravi
Karunanayake is that although the war is over the people have received no
dividend from it - in relation to a budget, this can only mean a dividend
in terms of money, like the dividends from the profits of a company. It is
not surprising that those whose main interest is in the accumulation of
private profit, usually at public expense, are so vocal about this
apparent lack of cash dividends to help line the pockets of those who are
eager for such profit. But, it will be hard for these people to go to any
village that sent its youth to fight in the battle against terror, and
announce there of the absence of any dividend from the end of the war. It
will not take long for them to be reminded that the biggest dividend that
has come to the people, all people of Sri Lanka, is the absence of any
more deaths in the battle for or against terror in the country. This is a
dividend that cuts across all barriers of ethnicity, religion, caste and
whatever other differences we continue to have in our country. But this
can hardly impress those who mistook Elephant Pass or Alimankada for
Pamankade and Kilinochchiya for Medawachchiya at the height of the
confrontation with the LTTE, and also dismissed Thoppigala as a mere
barren and rocky place with no strategic or military value
(Island : 4 July 2010).

Non Aligned Movement’s
Challenge To Ban Ki Moon On Sri Lankan Panel Plausible! -
LankaWeb Weekly Editorial July 4th 2010 - Now that the UN Secretary
General Ban Ki Moon has on his hands the watchful eye of the World’s Non
Aligned Movement (NAM) and nations incorporated by it and the criticism of
his bull in a Chinashop call to investigate Sri Lanka for war crimes
perhaps he should re-think the folly of his call. In addition to NAM there
already are several other world powers including Russia and China
disagreeing with Moon which exposes the concept that the man seems
somewhat desperate to implement his call which he may have to do using
proxies and remote control as the panel appointed by him will not be
granted Visas to enter Sri Lanka when one envisions the following related
facts which contradict the veracity and perhaps even legalities relative
to the call. The nations linked to NAM preparing to challenge UN Secretary
General Ban Ki-moon over his appointment of a three-member panel to advise
him on accountability issues during the final stages of the separatist war
that led to the military defeat of Tamil Tiger terrorists last year has
asked very legitimate questions which expose Ban Ki Moon’s portrayed
bias that could also be linked to the insistence of his UN colleagues with
Tamil sympathies where if one were to take it a step further might hint at
Tamil Tiger sympathies whether inadvertently or not! (LankaWeb
: 4 July 2010).

Senior Lawyers point out
that no country or organization has right to interfere with international
affairs of another country - Senior Lawyer Gomin
Dayasiri points out that no foreign country has right to interfere with
internal affairs of another country. It is mentioned in the UN charter as
well. Sri Lanka is the only country in the world that has been able to
eliminate terrorism. Mr. Dayasiri states that three elements are unable to
accept this grave reality and attempting to influence on Sri Lanka’s
internal affairs. These elements are western countries, pro-LTTE Tamil
Diaspora and some international NGOs. These elements were responsible for
spreading terrorism in Sri Lanka. At this juncture, they are trying to
reverse the Sri Lanka’s victory by harassing the brave leaders who
pioneered to eliminate terrorism. Mr. Dayasiri made these comments
participating at a programme in SLBC this morning. Senior Lecturer of Open
University Lawyer Raja Gunaratne said it is more difficult to defeat
terrorism conceptually than militarily (SLBC
: 4 July 2010).

Patrick Brown: Tamils are
“law abiding” he says. What nonsense! - by
Asoka Weerasinghe, Canada - Mr. Patrick Brown, MP Conservative Party MP
for Barrie, Ontario House of Commons Ottawa, Ontario. Dear Patrick: Your
Government of Canada message on behalf of Prime Minister Stephen Harper to
the Tamil community in Canada down right “pissed off” this card
carrying Conservative. You may wonder why? The statement in that message…
“The Tamil community in Canada has demonstrated that they are
law-abiding, hard working and contributors to our democratic civic
society,” was questionable. Who are you trying to kid? You seem so God
damn devious, what the heck are you up to? What the heck are the
Conservatives up to? That message not only insulted me, but also all other
‘law abiding’ Canadians and insulted and tarnished some good, hard
working Tamils whose main thrust is to be law abiding citizens, living by
the law in their adopted country, and bring up their young families
contributing intellectually and financially to the wealth of our great
nation that gave them a home. I know several of them as I break bread with
them and share a cup of the best Ceylon Orange Pekoe. But, Patrick, you
are too young at 32 to suffer from Alzheimer’s which also brings memory
loss. The Tamils are “law abiding” you said. That is a load of crap
Patrick. There are 10,000 hardcore Tamil Tiger terrorists roaming our
streets and 25 of them were from the Ocean Lady that landed on the shores
of Vancouver last October.and the Immigration Department let them loose.
Remember the 10 to 15-thousand Tamils taking to the streets in Ottawa and
Toronto last April and May with a sea of red Tamil Tiger terrorist flags,
the ruthless terrorist group that you Conservatives banned in Canada,
harassing the law-abiding tax payers. That is not law-abiding, is it
Patrick? These were the thuggish Tamils who couldn’t care two Prairie
straws about Canadian law (LankaWeb
: 4 July 2010).

Julia Gillard to send
back boatpeople - : Hundreds of Afghan and Sri
Lankan asylum-seekers are likely to be sent home under Julia Gillard’s
tough policy agenda to deter boatpeople. As the Prime Minister
prepared to unveil a new approach to tackling the issue this week -
possibly including a resumption to the processing of Sri Lankan boatpeople
- The Australian understands officials are working on a pact with
Afghanistan over returning asylum-seekers. It is believed the
agreement, which is not expected to be included in this week’s
announcement, would involve assurances from Kabul guaranteeing the safety
of failed asylum-seekers. Although up to 60 per cent of Afghan
asylum-seekers have had their claims rejected, only two have been returned
home since the surge in boatpeople started in late 2008. Federal
cabinet will hold talks on the new approach today ahead of the Thursday
deadline for a decision on whether the three-month freeze on the
processing of Sri Lankan asylum-seeker claims will be extended or
terminated. In an olive branch to Indonesia following the Oceanic
Viking standoff in which dozens of asylum-seekers were left in limbo,
Australian officials are working on plans to resource Indonesian police on
the front line of the people-smuggling struggle. Australian Federal
Police have already supplied a patrol boat in Lombok, and local officials
argue that an upgrading of the current small fleet of patrol boats is
urgently needed (Island
: 4 July 2010).

NAM considers move to
challenge Ban - Draft letter on Lankan issue causes divisions; India’s
stand not clear - Non Aligned Movement
(NAM) nations are preparing to challenge UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
over his appointment of a three-member panel to advise him on
accountability issues during the final stages of the separatist war that
led to the military defeat of Tiger guerrillas last year. The UN move is
widely regarded as a precursor to an imminent war crimes inquiry against
troops and guerrillas. The 118-member NAM is currently circulating a draft
letter among diplomats of the member countries represented at the UN in
New York. It has expressed “serious concern” about the appointment of
the panel “against the clearly expressed wishes of the country
concerned, and without any mandate from the Human Rights Council, the
Security Council or the General Assembly”. It is not immediately clear
whether the draft letter will receive the endorsement of all or most NAM
members. If it does receive approval, Egypt, the current chairman is
expected to forward the letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. No
member of the NAM has so far responded publicly to Mr. Ban’s move to
appoint the experts panel. Disapproving remarks so far have come from
Russia, China and Iran. Russia and China are, however, not members of the
NAM (Sunday
Times : 4 July 2010).

Ban demands ‘a pound of
flesh’. Is this a fair trial? By Lasanda
Kurukulasuriya - Despite strong opposition from the Sri Lankan government,
UN Secretary General Ban ki-Moon has appointed a three-member Advisory
Panel on Sri Lanka. The exercise is viewed by many as a precursor to an
international war crimes investigation on the Sri Lankan conflict. The
source from which the UNSG derives his mandate to initiate this inquiry
remains unclear. There was neither a UN Human Rights Council resolution
nor any UN Security Council endorsement for this action. Ban only refers
to the joint statement issued by him and President Rajapaksa at the war’s
end – a 760-word document dealing with many issues that concluded
saying: “The Secretary General underlined the importance of an
accountability process for addressing violations of international
humanitarian and human rights law. The government of Sri Lanka will take
measures to address those grievances.” If Sri Lanka has fallen short of
satisfying the UNSG with regard to “measures taken,” does this justify
imposing a hotly opposed, unwelcome move that places a lot of stress on a
small country struggling to pick up the pieces after a protracted,
debilitating internal conflict? A question that needs to be asked is
whether this pound-of-flesh attitude of the UNSG and his western backers
with regard to “accountability,” will punish the very victims of
conflict for whom they say their hearts bleed
(Sunday Times : 4 July 2010).

Lanka’s role in Israel
committee has no bearing on UN panel - Dr. Kohona - Sri
Lanka’s role in the UN committee on Israel has a history of over 30
years and has no bearing on the UN advisory panel on the country, Sri
Lanka’s Permanent Representative to the UN Dr. Palitha Kohona told
Sunday Observer. Dr.Kohona who was in Sri Lanka on a brief visit left
yesterday for New York. Asked of his role in the panel and related
adverse news reports Dr. Kohona said, “Sri Lanka is the ex-officio
Chairman of the UN committee on Israeli practices in the occupied
territories.” He said Sri Lanka has occupied this position for the
past 30 years or so and added that Permanent Representatives of Sri Lanka
automatically become the Chair of the Committee. The other members are
Malaysia and Senegal. The committee visits Egypt, Jordan and Syria
annually and presents a report to the UN General Assembly to facilitate
appropriate action. Dr. Kohona led a 13-day fact-finding visit to
Cairo, Amman and Damascus, during which the Committee heard from witnesses
from the occupied Palestinian territory and the occupied Syrian Golan,
their first-hand experiences of life under occupation. At the end of
the visit the committee called for an end to human rights violations by
Israel in the occupied territories of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and
the Syrian Golan Heights, the UN reported. The people have expressed
their inability to reconstruct homes and schools destroyed during Israel’s
2009 military offensive, due to the three-year-old blockade imposed on
Gaza, and the alarming situation of the water and sanitation systems,
which has serious implications on the health of Gaza’s 1.5 million
residents (Sunday
Observer : 4 July 2010).

World’s first ever
success story : Safety of civilians, was our topmost priority - Defence
Secy. Gotabaya Rajapaksa - “Instead of
criticizing and blaming the government, the world should study the unique
strategy adopted to protect displaced civilians during the three and half
years old battle against defunct LTTE terrorists, “ - Gotabhaya
Rajapaksa, Defence Secretary. Being the main force behind the
successful military operation which completely annihilated the LTTE in May
last year, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa in an interview with the
Sunday Observer spelled out the measures adopted to rescue and look after
over 280,000 displaced civilians and to maintain zero casualty figures
throughout the combat operations against the LTTE. Four Presidents
of eight previous regimes failed to sweep the LTTE completely may be due
to local and international pressure to unplug the on-going military
operations half way. This resulted in the terror outfit claiming that they
were ‘unbeatable’. President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who too tried to bring
them to a democratic path several times, was finally adamant that ‘the
LTTE should be defeated militarily’. Over 26,000 military
personnel had already sacrificed their lives when President Rajapaksa
resumed duties. He drove the military and the entire nation to
achieve a single goal - defeat the LTTE scourge through military means
confronting mounting international pressure (Sunday
Observer : 4 July 2010).

TNA wary of Govt. backing
for KP - While the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU)
said they will not allow the panel to set foot in Sri Lanka, the Jathika
Nidahas Peramuna (JNP) led by Wimal Weerawansa, tried to better that;
Weerawansa threatened to take the staff of the local UN office hostage- a
comment that was promptly disowned by the Sri Lankan government as being
only an individual’s opinion (Nation
: 4 July 2010).

Indian team to discuss
50,000 houses scheme for IDPs - The Indian
Government has agreed to build 50,000 permanent houses for IDPs who are
being resettled in Wanni, according to Deputy Resettlement Minister
Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan. He said a group of delegates would visit Sri
Lanka after the budget to discuss the contract with Lankan officials. Mr
Muralitharan said the ministry was providing Rs75,000 for the people being
resettled in Wanni to build temporary huts They would also receive dry
rations and other essential items for six months to help them boost their
livelihoods. He pointed out that the proportion of widows was high among
the resettled people and they might find it tough in rebuilding their
lives. Mr Muralitharan said the resettlement programmes had faced slight
delays because of the risks involved in the de-mining process. The Deputy
Minister said he discussed the resettlement process in high security zones
with the Defence Secretary. Vavuniya District Secretary Mrs. P S M Charles
said the de-mining process in Semamadu, Ilamaruthankulam, Arumugathankulam,
Pandrikeithakulam, Maligai and Periyathamannai -Velankulam had been
completed and IDPs could return to their areas soon (Sunday
Times : 4 July 2010).

TNA leaders in India for
key talks - Tamil National Alliance (TNA)
leaders will leave for India today on an invitation from Home Minister P.
Chidambaram. The six-member delegation, led by TNA Parliamentary Group
Leader R. Sampanthan, during its three-day visit will meet Mr. Chidambaram,
top officials and the main opposition Bharatiya Janatha Party (BJP)
leaders. A meeting with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will depend
on his availability. “The delegation will mainly discuss the
resettlement process in the north and India’s offer to build 50,000
houses for the displaced,” TNA Parliamentarian Mavai Senadhirajah, a
member of the delegation, said. He said India would also donate 500
tractors and vehicle equipment for the resettled families. The delegation
will also include Suresh Premachandran, Selvam Adaikalanathan, A.
Vinayagamoorthy and M. Sumanthiran (Sunday
Times : 4 July 2010).

TNA
leaders in India for key talks

43 killed, 180 injured in
suicide attacks on Pak Sufi shrine - .....
Terror struck Pakistan's cultural hub of Lahore as a pair of suicide
bombers attacked a famous Sufi shrine packed with thousands of
worshippers, killing at least 43 people, including women and children, and
injuring 180 others in the latest in a slew of attacks across the country
(Indian
Express ; 3 July 2010).

An historical view of
suicide bombing - ..... Suicide bombers have
also successfully targeted the most high-profile personalities, who are
otherwise deemed relatively invincible due to their tight security
arrangements. Recent times have seen the assassination of former Indian
Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi by a member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil
Eelam (LTTE), and the killing of the Sri Lankan President Ranasinghe
Premadasa in 1993 by the same terrorist organisation. In more recent
history, the world also saw a suicide bomber blowing himself up, seconds
after the two-time Pakistani Premier Benazir Bhutto was shot dead on
December 27, 2007 at Rawalpindi.... (The
News : 3 July 2010).

Hasalaka hero honoured in
Elephant Pass - A ceremony to felicitate
Hasalaka hero Corporal Gamini Kularathne was held in Elephant Pass where
he sacrificed his life. Corporal Kularathne’s mother Y. G. Juliet
was also felicitated at this ceremony. The ceremony was organized on
President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s instructions. Corporal Kularathne of
the Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment sacrificed his life on July 13, 1999. LTTE
terrorists had tried to overrun the Elephant Pass Army camp belonging to
the 6th Battalion of the Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment on July 13, 1999 at
around 2.30 a.m. The terrorists had planned to explode the Elephant Pass
camp by blasting a truck laden with explosives. Corporal Kularathne had
gone forward with hand grenades and blasted the truck sacrificing his
life. In recognition of this act of supreme gallantry, the highest
decoration a soldier can earn, the Parama Weera Vibushana Medal was
awarded by President Rajapaksa making Corporal Kularathne the first
recipient of this gallantry award. Central Province Chief Minister
Sarath Ekanayake said Corporal Kularathne sacrificed his life for the
motherland symbolising his bravery. The Central Province organised
this felicitation ceremony on President Rajapaksa’s advice. President
Rajapaksa as the Prime Minister then had promised Corporal Kularatne’s
mother to make arrangements for her to visit Elephant Pass where her son
sacrificed his life. “This is another fulfilment of the promise. We are
accompanying Corporal Kularathne’s mother and his family members to the
exact place where he sacrificed his life,” Chief Minister Ekanayake
added. Religious activities followed the felicitation ceremony (Daily
News : 3 July 2010).

UN muscles in on a Third
World country - Last month, the Sri Lankan
government refused to issue visas to members of a UN panel selected to
look into the possibility of war crimes in Sri Lanka’s war against Tamil
Tigers, and turned down conditions by the European Union for relaxed trade
concessions. Foreign Minister G.L.Peiris stated bluntly, "We will not
issue visas to the panel. We don't think we need them," adding that
such charges were the malicious fabrications by LTTE (Liberation Tigers of
Tamil Elam) supporters. The LTTE, a separatist organization, had been
involved in such a conflict since 1976, with the purpose of creating an
independent homeland for its Tamil members in the north and east of Sri
Lanka. In the course of this conflict, hundreds of thousands of Tamils,
Muslims, Christians and Sinhalese people had lost their lives or were
stripped of their possessions, displaced and ferreted to refugee camps.
Finally in May 2009, after a fierce battle with the full might of the Sri
Lankan Army, the LTTE was defeated and all talks of separatism ended. In
the aftermath of the event, accusations were raised against the Sri Lankan
government for their heavy handedness in putting an end to the conflict
that had disrupted this beautiful island for more than 30 years, and cries
of war crimes echoed from several Western countries (Arab
News : 3 July 2010).

Dimensions of
safeguarding sovereignty: Real and imagined -
by Malinda Senevirathne - Sri Lanka defeated terrorism and simultaneously
recovered a territorial integrity that had been compromised in many ways.
Some claim that one year after the defeat of terrorism the nation remains
fissured (Dayan Jayatilleke, ‘Domestic dimension of safeguarding
sovereignty’ in the Daily Mirror of June 30, 2010). Yes, we haven’t
exactly turned Sri Lanka into Utopia since May 19, 2010; there are, as
Dayan says, ‘fissures.’ Now I cannot think of any nation that is
un-fissured. There are no flat countries in the world, no flat communities
either. Societies can be described in terms of multiple hierarchies and
each of these are by definition un-fissured. We have division in terms of
class, caste, age, ethnic identity, religion, political ideology,
skin-colour and so on. All countries are fissured in this manner to a
greater or lesser degree. While it is lovely to dream of Utopia, common
sense says that what it important and pragmatic is to seek and obtain the
true dimensions of fissures, prioritize them, seek healing(s) that are
possible and do not create other fissures and compromise sovereignty,
dignity and so on. That would be the responsible way of going about it (Daily
Mirror : 3 July 2010).

Sri Lanka would not allow
International Intervention- Minister Dinesh Gunawardana -
Water Supply and Drainage Services Minister Dinesh Gunawardhana said in
parliament yesterday (02) this Government doesn’t allow intervening by
any International organization on internal affairs of Sri Lanka.
Some of our own people helped LTTE to destroy the economy and pressurize
the people of the country. There was a group of Internationals also who
fed the LTTE. Government would not permit a panel to inquire into
internal matters of government; even though European Union (EU) has posed
restrictions on us .Opposition party seeks to make SL an enemy of the
European Union (EU). We have taken all necessary steps to protect
the economy of the country, as a government we stand to protect the
Sovereignty of the country. Mangala Samaraweera MP mentioned
earlier, the UNP government in 2002-2004 marked the boundaries to divide
the country and destroy the democracy. But today he asks for an
international inquiry on Sri Lankan issues (Lanka
Puwath : 3 July 2010).

Dear Lady Ashton………..UN
Panel on Sri Lanka - by Dr Bandula Kothalawala
London N7 - Lady Catherine Ashton High Representative Council of European
Union Brussels Belgium; Dear Madam, UN Panel on Sri Lanka - As an
expatriate Sri Lankan now living in London, UK, and as an EU citizen and
taxpayer, I should like to express my indignation over the Statement on
Sri Lanka made by you on behalf of the Council of the European Union. I am
at a loss as to whether it is ignorance, incompetence or arrogance or a
mixture of all the three that prompted your action. The UN
Secretary-General has appointed the “Panel of Experts” in violation of
Article 100 of the UN Charter which reads, In the performance of their
duties the Secretary-General and the staff shall not seek or receive
instructions from any government or from any other authority external to
the Organization. They shall refrain from any action which might reflect
on their position as international officials responsible only to the
Organization. It is transparently clear that the Secretary-General has, on
this occasion, acted at the behest of some Western governments and NGOs
who have aligned themselves against Sri Lanka for disobeying their
dictates. Two permanent members of the Security Council (Russia and China)
have cast serious doubts on the propriety of the action by the
Secretary-General. In addition, non-aligned nations have expressed their
displeasure. If the Secretary-General had been genuinely interested in the
welfare and safety of civilians in conflict, the matter should have been
brought to the attention of the Security Council or the General Assembly,
as has been done on countless occasions in the past (LankaWeb
: 3 July 2010).

Reconstruction efforts:
Army making major contribution - Major General
Shavendra Silva said the Sri Lanka Army will excel in every field in the
country within a very short period. He added that the SLA’s operations
remain continued after the May 18th victory over terrorism. He said that
the SLA is engaged in a operation for the reconstruction of war ravaged
areas. Silva said that the Sri Army has made wider contribution to the
Government’s reconstruction efforts in the war ravaged area. Major
General Silva was delivering a lecture on Lessons from Winning Military
Strategies at the Institute of Personnel Management at Rajagiriya
yesterday. “Our men are present in reconstruction and development
process in the North and the East. Shavendra Silva, the youngest Major
General in the Sri Lanka Army said the SLA personnel have de-mined areas
which the INGOs and NGOs have never thought of. He added that the SLA
de-mining crew has posted a record by clearing a large extent of area
dotted with land-mines and anti-personnel mines. Silva urged the public to
be more vigilant though the LTTE was physically eliminated from the
country. He asked why certain international elements are engaged in
monitoring the activities of Sri Lanka after terrorism was eliminated with
much sacrifices by the Armed Forces and the general public. “The whole
country fought for freedom and we won it. We will protect the liberty that
we won,” he added (Daily
News : 3 July 2010).

Eelam War and the Long
Arm of the Indian Rearguard across the Palk Straits -
Indo- Sri Lanka relations made a dramatic and unprecedented change with
the beginning of the Eelam war. This change contributed to bringing about
far reaching military and political consequences within Sri Lanka and its
two destructive wars. The JVP led anti-devolutionary Sinhalese rebellion
had been the direct result of the changed Indian policy. The most
destructive Eelam war was the other. These developments have fundamentally
shaped the future course of Sri Lankan politics. Since 1983 India had
begun supporting the Tamil militant groups to train and arm its cadres for
military confrontations with the Sri Lankan state. Their bases in Tamil
Nadu provided a rearguard and they could retreat safely to these bases
after mounting deadly attacks to the Sri Lankan security forces. The
current Indian policy has changed positively as India has become pragmatic
but Sri Lanka needs political investment in the form of political
devolution and inclusiveness of ethnic minorities in order to effectively
de-activate the rearguard in Tamil Nadu. This short essay attempts to
analyze the impact of Indian policy on the Sri Lankan political and
military developments for the last 30 years through the rearguard in Tamil
Nadu and how it has shaped our political agenda on the ethnic issue (Daily
Mirror : 3 July 2010).

Former
Chief Minister of North East Provincial Councils, Varatharaja Perumal, is
back in Jaffna

KP as Northern Province
Chief Minister? - An Interview with Douglas
Devananda - In this interview, C.A.Chandraprema talks to Minister Douglas
Devananda about several recent developments in Tamil politics including
EPDP moves to talk to the TNA, and moves by the government to talk to the
TNA and to rope in KP, the ex-LTTE financial wizard and arms
procurer. Q: You have decided to hold talks with the TNA, what do
you really hope to gain from that? A: There isn’t an unanimous view
among Tamil political parties about the political solution that we all
talk about. So our aim would be to forge a consensus among Tamil parties
on this matter. The TMVP has already indicated that they are willing to
talk to us and we are awaiting a response from the TNA. We are not looking
at forming a coalition, at this moment in time and are only trying to
initiate a discussion. We have already held talks with PLOTE and factions
of the EPRLF and TELO. Q: I can understand your wanting to talk to the
TMVP, PLOTE and to Mr. Anandasangaree and others of the same ilk. But why
would you want to talk to the TNA, your direct rivals in the North? If you
start talking to them, the political advantage will go to them. A: If
there is no consensus among Tamil political parties, a political solution
will be delayed due to those very differences. Things will just drag on
and on with no end in sight. But if the Tamil parties arrive at some kind
of consensus then matters will be facilitated. Even more importantly,
there is the feeling among the Tamil people that all Tamil political
parties should unite and work together. Some people think that the EPDP is
an obstacle to unity. So we want to show the people that we are not an
obstacle to unity. We came into politics to solve problems. We do not
believe in being in politics without solving any problems (Island
: 2 July 2010).

The lies and double
standards of International Humanitarian Laws - by
Shenali Waduge - What we face today is one standard international law but
Double-standards in its application. We have countries like the US
and alliances commit war crimes as a matter of institutional necessity to
maintain their imperial role and ensure favorable climates of investments
and advance capitalism. We also have countries that have supported despots
like Suharto, Marcos, Fujimori, Mobutu, Savimbi, Pinochet, and media of
these countries backing their Governments and rationalizing each and every
war crime committed. Then there are the foreign policies that claim rights
to preemptive use of military power including nuclear power; countries
like the US who will not be bound by international treaties or agreements,
who will do anything and everything to prevent the emergence of any
strategic rival on the world scene. Then there is an institution called
the United Nations that has stood and watched US intervention, and has
done little to stop the crimes the US has done and is doing throughout the
world systematically which are fully documented, but the UN prefers to go
after smaller Governments with the baton of upholding human rights laws.
If human rights laws are applied with bias, officials of these “International
Human Rights Organizations” have no moral right to dictate terms or
produce writs of international laws to any nation until they guarantee
that international laws will be applied equally without bias whether a
country is large or small, powerful or not (Daily
Mirror : 2 July 2010).

Dutch financial boost for
post-LTTE rehab, resettlement efforts amidst GSP+ controversy -
Sri Lanka’s efforts to rehabilitate ex-LTTE cadres and help the war
displaced families to return to their villagers received a major financial
boost from the Netherlands. Pledging Euro 2 million (approximately
Rs. 277,820,000) in support of the ongoing rehabilitation and resettlement
efforts, Dutch Ambassador Leoni Cuelenaere explained their decision to
support the post-LTTE rehabilitation and reconstruction process.
Appreciating the work carried out by the International organization for
Migration (IOM) in the Northern and Eastern Provinces, Ambassador
Cuelenaere said that Euro one million each would be provided for two key
IOM programmes. IOM Sri Lanka Deputy Chief of Mission Lorena Lando
said that they had been involved in a smaller project on the same lines in
2003. Both Ambassador Cuelenaere and Ms Lando expressed confidence that
the post-LTTE efforts would be successful (Island
; 2 July 2010).

Justifying arm-twisting
by EU and UN - Stanley Weerasinghe, Pannipitiya
- According to Jehan Perera (JP) writing under the title, ‘Mounting
international pressure call for less confrontational approach’ in THE
ISLAND of 29 June, it was wrong for our government to have ended the war
against-the LTTE terrorism in May 2009. We should have succumbed to
international pressure and started ‘negotiations’ at the final phase
of the war. This is what he says: ‘The government came under
considerable international pressure to negotiate with the LTTE specially
during the last phase of the war, when its defeat was imminent, but the
government resisted these pressures to fight the war to the finish’. By
the time the war commenced, the LTTE had demarcated its future Tamil Eelam,
comprising one-third of land area and two-thirds of the coastal belt of
our country, making the prime use of the treacherous ‘Ceasefire
Agreement’ signed in 2002 between the then prime minister Ranil
Wickremesinghe and LTTE leader Prabhakaran. According to Eric Solheim (who
drafted the CFA which was heavily tilted in favour of the LTTE) quoted in
‘the Sunday Times’ of 27 June, war would have ended under the
supervision of the UN. UN’s intervention at that stage would have
inevitably resulted in the division of our country on ethnic lines, as
demarcated by the LTTE
(Island : 2 July 2010).

It's intimidation, says
Dr. Kohona - The panel of experts on Sri Lanka
to advice UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon was an attempt to intimidate
the weak and meek nations but was not called for by the member states of
the UN body, Sri Lanka's Permanent Representative to the UN Dr. Palitha
Kohona has said speaking with 'The Daily News', Thursday (July 01)
yesterday. Dr. Kohona currently in Colombo said the Non Aligned
Movement (NAM) too had protested to the UN Secretary General about this
unacceptable decision as he seemed to be influenced by certain NGO lobbies
but the UN was an organization of sovereign nation states and not
NGOs. Matters concerning Sri Lanka with regard to the final phase of
the humanitarian operations were taken up at the appropriate UN organ the
Human Rights Council and a motion was carried in favour of Sri Lanka with
29 member nations voting for us while only 12 members voted against us, he
said. There were other regions where thousands of human rights
violations were taking place daily but the UN Secretary General seemed to
be reluctant to take up these issues as some powerful and rich nations
were involved in those regions. But Ban Ki Moon seemed to have
ignored such violations, he noted. Dr. Kohona said there were only a
handful of nations that may be in agreement with the move against our
country but the vast majority of the member nations have expressed their
opposition to this move. NAM comprises 117 nations out of the 192
member states of the UN and NAM had objected to the move by the Secretary
General. In the case of appointment of panels by the UN it had been
done either at the request of the UN legislative organs or at the request
of the country itself. But in this case it was not so (Sri
Lanka Defence Ministry : 2 July 2010).

Report on Sri Lanka –
June 30,2010 - by Ira de Silva London, Canada -
Mr. Matthew Lee Inner City Press New York, N.Y. Dear Mr. Lee: Reference
your latest posting regarding Sri Lanka and the UN, what is very clear is
that you do not agree with the UN’s attitude to Sri Lanka and are
aggressively supporting the illegal action of the Secretary General in his
appointment of a panel of “experts” supposedly to advise him on Sri
Lanka. You completely ignore the fact that Ban’s UN is making excuses to
interfere in the internal matters of a sovereign country, a member of the
UN which is against the UN Charter itself. It is well known that Ban’s
agenda is driven by your own government’s goal of punishing Sri Lanka
for not permitting the US to evacuate the leadership of the LTTE so that
they could continue to terrorise Sri Lanka from outside the country. The
“influence” of the LTTE supporters in the U.S. seem to be guiding
policy at the State Department as well as at the UN. Are you also “influenced”
by them? If you recall, in May 2009, Mrs. Clinton called for a pause and
negotiation with the LTTE when the Sri Lankan forces had surrounded them,
a group that your own FBI had called the most ruthless terrorist
organization in the world. Would the U.S. “pause and negotiate” with
the leadership of Al Qaeda and Taliban who they are pursing in foreign
countries, killing thousands of civilians by indiscriminate bombing and
creating millions refugees all in the name of capturing or killing those
the U.S. perceives to be “bad terrorists” in contrast to the LTTE who,
according to Mrs. Clinton, are “good terrorists”. Such is the
hypocrisy of the US position on terrorists and Sri Lanka
(LankaWeb : 2 July 2010).

A response to the sound
of 'distant drums' from Ban Ki-moon ... The
Government has correctly responded, prudently opposed, and protested the
appointment of a Panel of Experts on Sri Lanka by United Nations
Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon. The Foreign Ministry in a statement issued
last week described the UN move as 'unwarranted and unnecessary
interference with a sovereign nation'. Sri Lanka has been pressurized much
by the United Nations from the time of Ban Ki-moon's predecessors like
Kofi Annan. The UN continued to pressurize successive Colombo Governments
during efforts to crush terrorism. It must be noted that the UN exerted
less pressure on the LTTE at that time and the Governments were forced
towards the negotiating table to talk peace with the perpetrators of
terror. Successive governments held such talks but the LTTE used such
opportunities to build up militarily to launch fresh offensives.
Certainly, the UN cannot be blind to such facts of the past (Sri
Lanka Defence Ministry : 2 July 2010).

Sri Lanka can handle its
own problems - China - China said Thursday it
believes the Sri Lankan government and people are capable of handling
their own problems. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang made the
remarks at a press conference in response to questions relating to UN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon’s recent appointment of members to a panel
considering the recent conflict in Sri Lanka. The Secretary-General has
appointed “a Panel of Experts that will advise him on the issues of
accountability with regards to alleged violations of international human
rights and humanitarian law during the final stages of the conflict in Sri
Lanka,” said Martin Nesirky, spokesperson of the UN Secretary-General,
June 22 (New York time). “We have noticed the appointments,” said Qin.
President Mahinda Rajapaksa established the Lessons Learnt and
Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) in May. This is to examine Sri Lanka’s
long running separatist conflict that ended last year. Qin expressed China’s
belief that Sri Lanka alone is capable of handling Sri Lanka’s problems.
China also hoped that the international community, including the UN
Secretariat, will create a favorable external environment for Sri Lankan
government to stabilize domestic situation, and to accelerate economic
growth, said Qin. Sri Lanka’s government forces declared victory over
the LTTE last year after a conflict that raged on and off for nearly three
decades and resulted in the deaths of thousands (Daily
News : 2 July 2010).

New fuel filling stations
for North - Arrangements have been made to
provide new fuel filling stations for the Northern Province. Several
filling stations have already been established in the North and more
filling stations are to be opened soon, a Petroleum Industries Ministry
spokesman said. According to the spokesman the filling station
constructed in Kilinochchi will be opened on July 13 by Petroleum
Industries Minister Susil Premajayantha. It has been built at a cost of Rs
8.6 million for the benefit of newly resettled people.
Transportation along the A9 road has increased since the end of the
humanitarian operation. Therefore the demand for fuel has also increased.
A large number of filling stations had been destroyed by the LTTE during
the past and many filling stations located along the A9 road (especially
filling stations from Vavuniya to Elephant Pass) have been destroyed. A
filling station set up at Mankulam at a cost of Rs 8.4 million has already
been opened. The construction of Puliyankulam filling station is
going on, he said. The Hirunorukandi and Uilankulama filling
stations which were used by the LTTE is now opened for the public after
renovations. A new filling station has been set up at Thunukkai. More
filling stations are to be set up soon under the direction of Minister
Premajayantha to meet the demand, he added (Sri
Lanka Defence Ministry : 2 July 2010).

Watching pleasure of MOON
and his Panel - By Mario Perera, Kadawata - Hey
diddle diddle UN cats and UN fiddles Are looking aghast and facing a
riddle 'cos a mad cow have jumped into their MOON The three panel puppy
dogs Waiting their day of doom Are we to laugh, they ask, are we to cry Or
fall into an UN-canny swoon? When Ban-ki sees these damning clips What
happened in glaring high noon The MOON will know his pants are down This
make believe knight, this sad faced clown Fats Domino wrote a long time go
Of a Moon that stood still on blueberry hill Now Ban-ki this blue Moon
yearning for a thrill Will ... (LankaWeb
; 2 July 2010).

Lanka's terrorism victory
example to others - President - No foreign army
could be a solution to resolve internal problems of a country which could
only be resolved through the support of its people, President Mahinda
Rajapaksa said adding that Sri Lanka was an example to the entire world in
this respect. He was addressing the Ukranian National Defence Academy
during his three day official visit to Ukraine. President Rajapaksa said
the experience of Sri Lanka in defeating terrorism was an example to other
countries faced with challenges posed by terrorism. He attributed the
reasons for the supreme victory to the immense humanism displayed by the
country's security forces. The President said he was prepared to share the
experience of his victorious forces in defeating terrorism with the
security forces of other nations that are battling terrorism adding that
this sharing of experience will assist Governments and their security
forces who desire to make the world a safe place to live by rooting out
terrorism. President Rajapaksa also expressed his gratitude to the
Ukranian Government for the assistance extended to his country's fight
against terrorism. First lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa, External Affairs
Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris, President's Foreign Affairs Co-ordinator MP
Sajin Vas Gunawardena, Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunga, Sri
Lanka's Ambassador to Russia Udayanga Weeratunga and Yoshitha Rajapaksa
student at the Ukraine National Defence Academy were also present
(Daily News : 2 July 2010).

In North, East Provinces:
One hundred GN vacancies to be temporarily filled -
One hundred Grama Niladari vacancies in Northern and Eastern Provinces
will be temporarily filled by retired Grama Niladaris Public
Administration and Home Affairs Ministry Higher Officers told the Daily
News yesterday. Accordingly, the appointments would last for one year
until new appointments are made through a competitive examination to be
conducted by the Examinations Department. He said there are about 300
vacancies yet to be filled due to lack of bilingual proficiency officers
in the country who can work in the Sinhala and Tamil languages. Meanwhile,
according to the new scheme of recruitment to the Grama Niladari Service,
three ordinary passes at the GCE A' level will be made compulsory. The new
scheme of recruitment had been already submitted to the Salaries and
Cadres Committee for approval. According to Ministry sources, a committee
has been appointed to evaluate the proposals of public representatives,
civil organizations Government Officers and others for demarcation of new
Divisional Secretariats and Grama Niladari Divisions or to amend their
area extents giving priority to development and administrative purposes.
The existing Assistant Government Agent offices will be transformed to
Divisional Secretariats, according to Ministry sources (Daily
News : 2 July 2010).

What
we face today is one standard international law but Double-standards in
its application.

WHAT IS GOING WRONG? -
By Gomin Dayasri - We are suddenly in the international incinerator, after
successfully navigating in troubled waters during times of war, when the
weather was far more cyclonic. The US State Department despatched a tomb
with over 300 charges on war crimes while we snuggle to cuddle its head,
Hillary Clinton; European Union decided to draw the curtain on GST + after
listening to the pleas of every Tom Dick and Harry from Colombo. UN
Secretary General appoints a team of three to advice on Sri Lanka after we
(unlike India that denied entry) lavished hospitality from Alston to
Arbour, and are now preparing tamely to concede more and more on the 13th
Amendment, after holding to our options when we were weaker. There are two
distinct epochs- War Zone during Pre General Elections as against Peace
Zone during Post General Elections. Therein lies the difference-
government under threat, brilliant in the management of many aspects in
the war with a marginalized majority to a government, woefully inadequate
in times of peace living in bliss, on a cushioned near 2/3 majority. Is it
the Orwellian Ministry of Truth’s War is Peace? Living on laurels is
like sleeping on a pillow with a reptile underneath (LankaWeb
: 1 July 2010).

Imperialism lurks through
EU - The European Union has failed to engage the
people of Sri Lanka in its GSP plus tax benefit. The Government's effort
to come out of 30 year terrorist conflict which most of the world powers
used as a political weapon in South Asia has been put in to a difficult
time by the European Union in the name of human rights and reconciliation,
Sri Lanka Green Alliance said in a press release. The Sri Lanka Green
Alliance while recognizing Human rights states that the EU taking the same
old European imperial style has taken the GSP plus as a pressuring
mechanism to push the Sri Lanka Government to comply with the narrow
political demands. This stance makes EU an enemy in the eyes of the public
rather than the friendly arms with assistance when needed to recover from
the wounds of conflict. EU as a coalition of states in Europe which is
said to be interested in preserving human rights for all in one hand gives
room to the LTTE terror leftovers around the world to recover and restore
their lost network and on the other hand pressuring the Sri Lankan
Government over the GSP plus suppressing the Sri Lankan citizens (Daily
News : 1 July 2010).

Youth from N&E train
as cops - One hundred Tamil and Muslim youth
recruited to the Police from the North and East, commenced training at the
Kalutara Police Training School yesterday (1). They would be posted to the
North and East after the course, Police Director Recruitment SP Kithsiri
Jayalath said
(Island : 1 July 2010).

Ban dismisses Lankan
objections - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon
dismissed on Tuesday objections by Sri Lanka to his plan to establish a
panel to look into possible human rights abuses there and said he would
set it up without delay. Ban told a news conference he was within his
rights to appoint the commission of experts to probe possible violations
during Sri Lanka’s civil war despite a complaint from President Mahinda
Rajapaksa this month that the move was unwarranted. The UN chief also
rejected as based on a “misunderstanding” a letter from non-aligned
countries at the United Nations charging that he was exceeding his
authority. Rights groups and Western governments are pressing for some
kind of accountability for thousands of civilian deaths in the last months
of the island’s 25-year war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
(LTTE), who aimed to create a separate homeland for the island’s Tamil
minority. Rights groups have accused Sri Lanka and the LTTE of war crimes
during the conflict’s final phase last year and have demanded an
independent probe, as has UN special rapporteur for extrajudicial
executions Philip Alston. Ban said the appointment of the UN panel
accorded a joint statement with Sri Lanka issued after he visited just
after the end of the war last May. "The panel I am establishing will
advise me on the standards, benchmarks and parameters based on
international experience that must guide any accountability process such
as the one mentioned in the joint statement," he said (Daily
Mirror : 1 July 2010).

All ex-LTTE child
combatants handed over to their parents - The
Ministry of Rehabilitation and Prison Reforms in a communique states that
all ex-LTTE child combatants have been handed over to their parents after
rehabilitation. All child protective accommodation and rehabilitation
centres were completely decommissioned and closed on May 18, 2010. The
children who went through the rehabilitation process undergoing vocational
training and formal education were officially handed over to their parents
and families at Magistrate's Court, Vavuniya in the presence of
representatives from UNICEF and Local Authorities. Most of these children
were back in their original schools. The Commissioner General,
Rehabilitation, did not hold any child combatant at present, said the
communique (Island
: 1 July 2010).

False reporting by UN and
lack of integrity in UN reports- Open Letter -
by Ben Silva - To : Mr. Anders Hjertstrand Chief of OIOS Internal Audit
Division Geneva Office, UN; Subject: UNHCR/CORI Report on Sri Lanka - Dear
Sir, It appears that UN is accepting secondary data without verifying the
integrity of data. If decisions are made on data, then the integrity of
the data is vital and essential for any outcomes based on that data to be
valid. So, it is essential that the data should be checked for accuracy,
authenticity and verified that no bias has been introduced to the data.
Orgs such as HRW and AI and ICG, do not actually obtain data themselves
and they have been accused of using hearsay as facts. Many have indicated
that reports produced by HRW and ICG as garbage, due to the lack of
integrity of their information [1],[2]. If UN use reports produced by HRW
or ICG, then UN reports themselves become unreliable and could be
classified as inaccurate and false. It is well known that individuals and
organization pick the data that satisfy their pet theories whilst ignoring
other data. It is well known that AI, HRW and ICG have been sympathetic to
LTTE and Tamils and against Sri Lanka. The same comments apply to UN as
well, as there are influential Tamils, such as Ms Pillay and Ms
Coomaraswamy in UN. If UN picks AI,HRW and ICG reports, then it is to
confirm their own bias. UN has completely ignored the deadly terrorist
nature of LTTE and is now seeking revenge on Sri Lanka
(LankaWeb : 1 July 2010).

The
LTTE international network has offered to co-operate with the UN panel
appointed by UN Secretary General Ban ki-moon

What was really happening
in Sri Lanka was that a blood thirsty racist group led by
some misled Tamils called LTTE was terrorizing against the Government
of Sri Lanka and its people irrespective of their ethnicity with an
intention of carving out a separate state. There is no conflict as
such between Sinhalese and Tamil communities in Sri Lanka. In fact,
the majority of the Tamil community lives in peace and harmony among
the Sinhalese population through out the country apart from the
Northern part of Sri Lanka. The entire Sinhalese and the Muslims
population who lived in the Northern area for centuries were either
killed or chased away completely by the LTTE Tamil Tiger terrorists.
At the moment, not a single Sinhalese or Muslim is living in Jaffna,
but, many thousands of Tamils are living in Colombo in peace with
the other communities. Based on 2001 census, the Tamil population in
Colombo district is 12.1% (see
2001 census). So, who is discriminated ? Tamils or Sinhalese? Do
you need more evidence ?

http://www.apiwenuwenapi.com/
is the official web site of the Api Wenuwen Api fund raising
campaign. The Api Wenuwen Api Fund is a collaboration between the
The Ministry of Defence and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka to build
50,000 houses for the serving Tri-Service personnel. The gift of
housing is one of the best and most tangible ways to demonstrate our
gratitude and appreciation. This is the time for all Sri Lankans to
support our brothers and sisters who are committed to bringing peace
to our motherland Sri Lanka. All contributions from the campaign and
fund raising events will be donated to Api Wenuwen Api Housing
Project in Sri Lanka.

Thawalama
Development Foundation

No. 5,
Rajakeeya Mawatha, Colombo 7, Sri Lanka.

The
Thawalama Development Foundation (TDF) was established on 1994
April 25th to support and assist in the implementation of
Project Thawalama approved by the Ministry of Defense on 1994
January 14th. http://thawalama.org

Winning War Against
Terror, Human rights violations and War Crimes - An open
letter to Ban Ki Moon, Secretary General of the UN, Ms. Navi
Pillay, UN Hign Commissioner of Human Rights , Ms. Radhika
Coomaraswamy, Special representative of the UN SG for
Children in Armed Conflict by Warna Hettiarachchi, Canada (Sinhale
Hot News : 6 July 2010).

British
FM David Milliband is back to his third grade gimmicks against
Sri Lanka. Please look after your back yard without poking your
stinking fingers into Sri Lankan Affairs. Sri Lanka has
had enough of you and your white clan. We do not care you guys
anymore. So, Shut up.

None of
the three vessels carrying Sri Lankan Tamils, which had been
intercepted by the Canadians and Indonesians on high seas during
the past fortnight, originated in Sri Lanka.

Conspiracy
by Arms Manufacturing Western Nations

Western Arms Manufacturers need battlefields
to sell their Arms. An estimated 500,000 individuals dies in
small arms-conflict every year, approximately one death per
minute. It is estimated that yearly, over 1 trillion dollars are
spent on military expenditure worldwide.

Open
Letter to UN Secretary General: Ms. Hillary Clinton’s book
on Rape has Blank pages on Okinawa - by Bandu de Silva, Former
Sri Lankan Ambassador to France, and the Vatican (Asian
Tribune ; 17 Oct 2009).

What is really happening
in Sri Lanka today is that a blood thirsty racist group led by
some misled Tamils called LTTE is terrorizing against the Government
of Sri Lanka and its people irrespective of their ethnicity with an
intention of carving out a separate state. There is no conflict as
such between Sinhalese and Tamil communities in Sri Lanka. In fact,
the majority of the Tamil community lives in peace and harmony among
the Sinhalese population through out the country apart from the
Northern part of Sri Lanka. The entire Sinhalese and the Muslims
population who lived in the Northern area for centuries were either
killed or chased away completely by the LTTE Tamil Tiger terrorists.
At the moment, not a single Sinhalese or Muslim is living in Jaffna,
but, many thousands of Tamils are living in Colombo in peace with
the other communities. Based on 2001 census, the Tamil population in
Colombo district is 12.1% (see
2001 census). So, who is discriminated ? Tamils or Sinhalese? Do
you need more evidence ?

The United States' top intelligence
agency, Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) says that the Liberation Tigers of
Tamil Eelam (LTTE) is the most dangerous and deadly extremist organization in the
world. The official website of FBI in its tops story said that LTTE is far more
dangerous terrorists outfit than al Queda, Hezbullah or even HAMAS.
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